ATTORNEY-GENERAL

Offenders: Homicide

Katy Clark: To ask the Attorney-General what discussions he has had with the Crown Prosecution Service on the rate of convictions for offenders of corporate manslaughter.

Dominic Grieve: As part of his superintendence of the Crown Prosecution Service the Attorney-General has regular contact and discussion with the Director of Public Prosecutions about a range of topics.

Offenders: Homicide

Katy Clark: To ask the Attorney-General if he will review the Crown Prosecution Service's practices in respect of bringing prosecutions for offences of corporate manslaughter.

Dominic Grieve: I have no plans to review the Crown Prosecution Service's (CPS) practices in relation to prosecutions for offences of corporate manslaughter.
	The CPS reviews all cases, including cases involving corporate manslaughter, in accordance with the Code for Crown Prosecutors (the Code), which is issued by the Director of Public Prosecutions under section 10 of the Prosecution of Offences Act 1895. The latest version of the Code was published in February 2010.
	The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 introduced a new statutory offence of corporate manslaughter for offences occurring on or after 6 April 2008. Any offences that are alleged to have occurred before 6 April are considered by the CPS under the old common law of manslaughter by gross negligence.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Afghanistan: Christianity

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has made to his Afghan counterpart on the treatment of Afghan Christians; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: We work closely with international partners to monitor the situation of Afghan Christians and to raise this issue with the Afghan Government.
	We continue to remind the Afghan Government of its duty to abide by its national and international commitments on freedom of religion and belief, and to respect the freedom of worship as enshrined in the Afghan constitution.

Afghanistan: Christianity

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to his Afghan counterpart on the case of Said Musa; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: We are working with international partners to monitor developments and to raise this case with the Afghan Government. During his visit to Afghanistan in January 2011, the UK Attorney-General raised this case with the Afghan Attorney-General.
	We continue to remind the Afghan Government of its duty to abide by its national and international commitments on freedom of religion and belief, and to respect the freedom of worship as enshrined in the Afghan constitution.

Afghanistan: Religious Freedom

Kris Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Government of Afghanistan in respect of the death sentence passed on Said Musa.

Alistair Burt: Said Musa is in custody, charged with conversion and apostasy. He has not yet been brought to trial or sentenced to death. We are working with the international community to monitor developments and to raise this case with the Afghan Government. The UK Attorney-General, the right hon. and learned Member for Beaconsfield (Mr Grieve), raised this case with the Afghan Attorney General during his visit to Afghanistan in January 2011.
	We continue to remind the Afghan Government of their duty to abide by their national and international commitments on freedom of religion and belief and to respect the freedom of worship as enshrined in the Afghan constitution.

Belize: Guatemala

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received on the state of relations between Belize and Guatemala.

Jeremy Browne: The UK works to maintain momentum towards a lasting resolution of the territorial dispute between Belize and Guatemala. I discussed the dispute with the Guatemalan Foreign Minister in Guatemala in November. He welcomed recent progress, including the unanimous vote by Guatemala's Congress to allow a referendum in Guatemala on the issue of whether to take the border dispute to the International Court of Justice.
	The Governments of Belize and Guatemala must now agree a date to hold national referenda in their two countries. We welcome the positive and crucial role of the Organisation of American States Mission to the Adjacency Zone between Guatemala and Belize, including its efforts to maintain peace and security, and build confidence between the communities living there. We welcome Guatemala's adoption of the bilateral Partial Scope Trade Agreement, which will facilitate trade between the two countries and which has quickly delivered an increase in agricultural exports from Belize to Guatemala.

Egypt: British Nationals Abroad

Lindsay Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what his most recent estimate is of the number of UK nationals remaining in Egypt; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: Our primary concern throughout the political unrest in Egypt has been the safety of visiting or resident British nationals. We estimate that there are approximately 20,000 British nationals remaining in Egypt.

Egypt: Politics and Government

Lindsay Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with his American counterpart on the political situation in Egypt; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: I spoke to Secretary of State Clinton on 30 January 2011 by telephone and the Prime Minister met her on 5 February 2011 while attending the Security Conference in Munich.
	We discussed the need for consistent messages to the Egyptian Government encouraging them to create a more broad-based Government, commit to human rights and freedom of expression, and ensure an orderly transition to free and fair elections.

European Union

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on how many occasions the European Affairs Committee of the Cabinet has met since May 2010; whether that committee has discussed the return of powers and competences from the EU; and which EU directives and other EU legislation that committee has considered.

Francis Maude: I have been asked to reply.
	It is longstanding Government practice not to disclose information relating to ministerial meetings, including the proceedings of Cabinet and Cabinet committees, as to do so would put at risk the public interest in the full and frank discussion of policy by Ministers.

European Union Bill

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many officials in his Department have been assigned to work on the European Union Bill.

William Hague: There are currently seven officials working on the European Union Bill full-time. In addition, a number of other officials make contributions to the ongoing work in this area as part of their existing duties.

Gilad Shalit

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent steps he has undertaken to bring about the release of Gilad Shalit; what discussion he has had at UN level on the release of Gilad Shalit; and if he will make a statement. [R]

Alistair Burt: I refer the hon. Member to the response given by my noble Friend, the right hon. Lord Howell of Guildford, to my noble Friend Baroness Tonge, on 25 January 2011,  Official Report,  House of Lords, column WA139.
	Our embassy officials in Tel Aviv are in touch with Gilad Shalit's parents and their representatives whenever there is a development on his case and have held a number of meetings with them. We are always open to any requests for meetings and offering assistance wherever it is feasible.

Hong Kong: Passports

Frank Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many people are employed in the regional passport processing centre in Hong Kong.

Jeremy Browne: The Regional Passport Processing Centre in Hong Kong employs 24 people.

Israel

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the government of Israel on civil unrest in  (a) Egypt and  (b) Lebanon; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: We have a close dialogue with the Government of Israel at ministerial and official level. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend, discussed the situation in Lebanon with Foreign Minister Lieberman during his visit to London on 24 January 2011. Our ambassador in Tel Aviv has also discussed the situation in Egypt with the National Security Adviser to Netanyahu underlining our views on the need to ensure a peaceful and dignified transition.

Israel

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  what discussions he has had with his Israeli counterpart on Israel's security concerns since January 2010; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what steps he has taken to strengthen relations with the government of Israel since July 2010; what steps he plans to take to strengthen such relations in each of the next three years; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: We have regular dialogue with the Government of Israel at both ministerial and official level. I visited Israel and the Occupied Territories in January 2011 and met Foreign Minister Lieberman. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend, also visited in November 2011. Foreign Minister Lieberman met with the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend, and myself when he visited London on 24 January 2011. Officials will attend the Strategic Dialogue talks in March 2011 in Israel. A wide range of issues were discussed at these various meetings, including security.
	We have a strong and productive relationship with the Israelis where we can speak frankly to each other. In his press statement of 24 January 2011 the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend, stressed the British Government's commitment to a strong bilateral relationship with Israel.

Middle East

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  what recent assessment he has made of the extent of arms smuggling into Gaza; what discussions he has had since December 2010 with the Government of  (a) Israel and  (b) Egypt on this issue; and if he will make a statement; [R]
	(2)  what recent discussions he has had with  (a) the Government of Israel and  (b) the Palestinian Authority on the position of Hamas on peace talks between the Government of Israel and the Palestinian Authority; and if he will make a statement; [R]
	(3)  what his policy is on the recent statement by Hamas on peace talks between the Government of Israel and the Palestinian Authority; and if he will make a statement; [R]
	(4)  what steps he has  (a) taken since December 2010 and  (b) plans to take during the next six months to press Hamas to accept the Quartet Principles and join the negotiations between the Government of Israel and the Palestinian Authority; and if he will make a statement; [R]
	(5)  what recent steps he has taken to assist the Government of Israel in preventing weapons smuggling into the Gaza Strip; and if he will make a statement; [R]
	(6)  what steps he has taken to assist the Government of Israel to  (a) increase the amount of aid entering the Gaza Strip and  (b) facilitate exports from the Gaza Strip; and if he will make a statement since 1 January 2010. [R]

Alistair Burt: I refer my hon. Friend to my responses of 7 February 2011,  Official Report, columns 22-23W and also of 29 November 2010,  Official Report, column 555W.
	As my hon. Friend is aware, the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), raised the situation in Gaza with Prime Minister Netanyahu when he visited Israel in November. I also discussed Gaza at length with the Israeli Co-ordinator for Government Activity in the Territories (COGAT), General Dangot, when I visited the region on 16-19 January 2011. Officials at our embassy in Tel Aviv raise Gaza access with the Government of Israel on a regular basis. We are also part of the Gaza Counter Arms Smuggling Initiative and my officials participate in regular discussions with key partners, including Israel and the US, most recently on 9 February.
	On 8 February 2011 I welcomed economic plans for West Bank and Gaza and underlined the need for full implementation. I said:
	"We continue to encourage the Government of Israel to enable Gaza exports this year to attain the levels of 2007. We strongly echo Tony Blair's call for an end to all attacks on Israel from Gaza. We will continue to work with the Quartet Representative, the Government of Israel and the Palestinian Authority to re-open Gaza for business. The British Government believes that a strong economy in the Occupied Territories is key to promoting peace, stability and prosperity."
	We welcome any progress, such as Israel's approval of the 20 projects in Gaza including the seven United Nations Relief and Works Agency schools they announced on 4 February 2011 and we encourage more.
	On Hamas, we are concerned by reports that they continue to acquire and test a variety of weapons. This is a continuing picture and we are not able to comment further on the detail. However, we have long made it clear that the arming and funding of Hamas and other Palestinian rejectionist groups is unacceptable.
	We continue to call on Hamas to take concrete steps towards the Quartet principles: renouncing violence, recognising Israel and accepting previously signed agreements.

Middle East

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with his  (a) Israeli and  (b) Palestinian counterpart on a universal statehood strategy since December 2010; what response was received from each; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: During my visit to Israel and the Occupied Territories in January, I met with Foreign Minister Lieberman and President Abbas. I stressed that the UK sees negotiations towards a two state solution as the only way to meet the national aspirations of Israelis and Palestinians and lead to a sovereign, viable and contiguous Palestinian state living in peace and security alongside a safe and secure Israel and their other neighbours in the region. This message was reinforced by the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he met with Foreign Minister Lieberman on 24 January 2011.
	In response, both parties were already aware that this was the UK Government's position.

Middle East: Armed Conflict

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the government of Israel on security threats from  (a) Gaza,  (b) Lebanon and  (c) Iran; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: We have regular dialogue with the Government of Israel at both ministerial and official level. I visited Israel and the Occupied Territories in January 2011 and met Foreign Minister Lieberman. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs also visited in November 2011. Foreign Minister Lieberman met with the Secretary of State and myself when he visited London on 24 January 2011. Officials will attend the Strategic Dialogue talks in March 2011 in Israel. A wide range of issues were discussed at these various meetings, including security.

Middle East: Peace Negotiations

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  if he will make it his policy to encourage the leadership of the Palestinian Authority to return to direct negotiations with the government of Israel; what recent discussions he has had with  (a) the government of Israeli and  (b) the Palestinian Authority on a return to direct negotiations; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what steps he has  (a) taken since December 2010 and  (b) plans to take during the next six months to maintain confidence in the peace process between the government of Israel and the Palestinian Authority; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: We are concerned with the current impasse in talks and see an urgent need for progress. Since December 2010, we have been engaged energetically with the parties, the US and the EU. During my visit in mid-January, I spoke with President Abbas and urged him to find a way to return to talks. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs met Israeli Foreign Minister Lieberman when he visited the UK and stressed that the window for peace in the middle east is closing, and the continued occupation is eroding Israeli security and international support for Israel. The Secretary of State has also spoken regularly with Secretary Clinton and EU Ministers on next steps in the peace process. We will continue these efforts over the next six months.

Palestinians: Overseas Aid

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  whether his Department has allocated funds to the Palestinian authorities for the training of police and security forces in the last three years; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  whether his Department has been involved in the training of Palestinian Authority personnel in the last three years; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: holding 10 February answer 2011
	The British Government have been involved in a programme to build the capacity of the Palestinian security forces for a number of years.
	Currently the UK provides direct budgetary support to the Palestinian Authority (PA) as part of our commitment to Prime Minister Fayyad's state building agenda. Part of his agenda is the reform of the Palestinian Security forces. A condition of our memorandum of understanding is that the PA must make progress on human rights.
	In addition we offer support through the Middle East and North Africa Conflict Pool (MENA CP)-a tri-departmental programme funded jointly by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), the Ministry of Defence (MoD) and the Department for International Development (DfID). Approximately two thirds of the MENA CP budget for Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories focuses on improving the performance of the Palestinian security sector through a combination of support to the United States' Security Co-ordinator (USSC) and to the European policing and rule of law missions in the West Bank. The MENA CP support to the Palestinian Authority security forces is designed to enhance the forces' professionalism and build their capability to improve their performance against internationally recognised human rights standards and accountability.
	In recent years, UK programme funds have helped provide technical advice on governance, leadership and human rights issues to the Palestinian Security Sector, including the Civil Police, Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Defence.
	The UK condemns any abuse of human rights. We take allegations of human rights abuses extremely seriously and are studying recent allegations of mistreatment by the Palestinian Authority security forces carefully. I raised the issue of human rights abuses when I met Prime Minister Fayyad on his recent visit to the region and asked for a concrete assurance that allegations would be investigated and appropriate actions taken. Prime Minister Fayyad gave this, noting that the PA was addressing this issue not just as a result of international pressure, but because he had a deep personal conviction that human rights should be respected and at the heart of a future Palestinian state.

Peru: Catholicism

Tom Clarke: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the state of the UK's relations with the Catholic Church in Peru; and if he will make a statement.

Jeremy Browne: Through our embassy in Lima we maintain a regular and friendly dialogue with senior representatives of the Roman Catholic Church in Peru. Since our ambassador's arrival in Peru in August 2010, he has met the Papal Nuncio several times. During these meetings they discussed our shared interests in tackling poverty, social conflict and climate change.
	Through the Department for International Development's Latin America Partnership Programme Arrangement we have also worked with Catholic charities, such as Catholic Agency for Overseas Development (CAFOD), to tackle maternal health, poor education and disease.

Peru: Catholicism

Tom Clarke: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether his Department has made representations to the Catholic Church in Peru on ending support for community protests against mining companies.

Jeremy Browne: We welcome the important role of the Catholic Church in promoting good community relations throughout Peru. We are aware of allegations that third parties have pushed for the removal of Catholic bishops to new posts away from certain communities in Peru. We have not sought to influence any church appointment.

Russia: Human Rights

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans he has to hold discussions with his Russian counterpart on the rule of law and the fundamental human rights of Russian nationals during the forthcoming bilateral meeting; and if he will make a statement.

David Lidington: I can confirm that the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), will hold discussions with Foreign Minister Lavrov on human rights and the rule of law.
	The Government continue to work with Russia on addressing ongoing human rights issues. We support President Medvedev's focus on the need to strengthen the rule of law in Russia including promoting the independence of the judiciary. A transparent and independent Russian legal system is in all our interests. We encourage Russia to ensure that all human rights violations are investigated fully, promptly and impartially.

Russia: Human Rights

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will raise the  (a) case of Mikhail Khodorkovsky,  (b) case of Platon Lebedev,  (c) death of Sergey Manitsky,  (d) death of Anna Politkovskaya,  (e) death of Natalya Estemirova and  (f) death of Stanislav Markelov with his Russian counterpart during the forthcoming bilateral meeting.

David Lidington: Human rights are an important part of our bilateral relationship with Russia, and the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), will raise our concerns about the rule of law and human rights issues highlighted by these high profile cases.

South Africa: Rape

Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has discussed with his South African counterpart measures to combat the practice of corrective rape in that country.

Henry Bellingham: The UK opposes discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in all circumstances. We believe that human rights are universal and should apply equally to all people, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity.
	The Government of South Africa place a high priority on the fight against all crime, especially that involving sex and violence. However the South African police service is struggling to meet the challenge. The UK Government, through our high commission in Pretoria, are in regular contact with the Government of South Africa and the South African police service about our concerns over the crime rate, including rape. We continue to monitor the situation closely.
	The Department for International Development is also planning a new four-year programme in South Africa to address the high levels of gender based violence. This is likely to focus on preventing sexual and physical violence and improving the response to violence. These plans are subject to the outcome of the bilateral aid review (expected to be announced before the end of March).
	The Foreign and Commonwealth Office holds a regular dialogue with South Africa on all issues, including human rights. While I have not personally raised the issue of corrective rape, colleagues at our high commission in Pretoria will do so at the earliest possible opportunity.

Tunisia: Politics and Government

Lindsay Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he next plans to meet his Tunisian counterpart; and what issues he plans to raise at that meeting.

Alistair Burt: The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs visited Tunisia on 7 and 8 February. He did not meet his counterpart but did have substantive meetings with the Prime Minister, Mohamed Ghannouchi, and the Minister for International Co-operation, Mohammed Jouini. The Foreign Secretary raised several issues including the importance of following through on the commitments already made by the interim Government on political and economic reform. These measures needed to be swift and irreversible.
	They also discussed the importance of elections and the need for them to be fair and open to all. The economy needed to get back on track, however, in order to attract investment to the country companies would need to be assured that the system would be open and transparent.
	The UK will follow progress closely. Our ambassador in Tunis and I will continue to have regular discussions with the Tunisian Government during the transition to democracy. We stand ready to help with this process both in preparation for elections and towards further democratisation.

Tunisia: Politics and Government

Lindsay Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the political situation in Tunisia; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs was in Tunis last week and had discussions with, among others, Prime Minister Ghannouchi, Minister of International Co-operation Jouini and a group of young Tunisians who had been involved in the protests. He was able to see first hand that the security situation has improved and that stability is returning. Prime Minister Ghannouchi's Government have announced a number of measures towards political and economic reform and requested election monitoring assistance from the EU. It will be important that these measures are implemented folly and that elections, open to all parties, are undertaken later this year in order to show the people of Tunisia that change is real and irreversible.
	Tunisia has made great strides over the past three weeks and we hope that this momentum continues. We will continue to work with partners, including in the EU, to promote political reform.

West Bank

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the political situation in the West Bank; and if he will make a statement. [R]

Alistair Burt: I refer my hon. Friend to my response of 7 February 2011,  Official Report, columns 20-21W.
	As indicated there, the Quartet met in Munich on 5 February 2011 to discuss events in the Middle East.
	In their statement they said:
	"The Quartet reaffirmed that negotiations should lead to an outcome that ends the occupation that began in 1967 and resolves all permanent status issues, in order to end the conflict and achieve a two-state solution. The Quartet reiterates its support for concluding these negotiations by September 2011. In its discussions with the parties, the Quartet is giving serious consideration to their views on how to bring about resumed negotiations on all core issues, including borders and security.
	The Quartet commended President Abbas' leadership of the Palestinian Authority, and continued Palestinian statebuilding efforts. It welcomed the package of measures announced by Prime Minister Netanyahu and Quartet Representative Blair for both the West Bank and Gaza and encourages full implementation and additional steps."

West Bank

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the economic situation in the West Bank; what recent discussions he has had with the  (a) government of Israel,  (b) Palestinian Authority,  (c) World Bank and  (d) International Monetary Fund on the economic situation in the West Bank; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: I refer my hon. Friend to my response to him on 10 January 2011,  Official Report, column 231W.
	On 8 February 2011, I welcomed economic plans for west bank and Gaza and underlined the need for full implementation.
	In a statement on 6 February 2011 I said:
	"The British Government welcomes Friday's announcement by Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu and Quartet Envoy Tony Blair. As Tony Blair said, the practical implementation of these measures will be key. We continue to encourage the Government of Israel to enable Gaza exports this year to attain the levels of 2007. We strongly echo Tony Blair's call for an end to all attacks on Israel from Gaza. We will continue to work with the Quartet Representative, the Government of Israel and the Palestinian Authority to re-open Gaza for business. The British Government believes that a strong economy in the Occupied Territories is key to promoting peace, stability and prosperity.
	More broadly, the continued occupation is hampering peace, economic prosperity and stability in the region. This is not in the interests of either the Israelis or the Palestinians. The window for peace in the Middle East is closing and, as the Quartet statement yesterday made clear, it is imperative the parties return to talks urgently to achieve a two state solution."

PRIME MINISTER

Departmental Information Officers

Pete Wishart: To ask the Prime Minister how many people were employed  (a) as press officers,  (b) as internal communication officers,  (c) as external communication officers,  (d) as communications strategy officers and  (e) in other positions with a communications remit by 10 Downing street on the most recent date for which figures are available.

David Cameron: I refer the hon. Member to the departmental structure chart for the Cabinet Office which includes 10 Downing street. This is available on the No. 10 website:
	http://transparency.number10.gov.uk/org-charts.php

Members: Correspondence

Margaret Hodge: To ask the Prime Minister when he plans to respond to the letter from the right hon. Member for Barking of 22 November 2010 on the impact of changes to housing benefit in Barking.

David Cameron: A reply has been sent.

Remploy: Termination of Employment

Ian Austin: To ask the Prime Minister pursuant to the oral answer to the right hon. Member for Cynon Valley of 2 February 2011,  Official Report, column 857, what the evidential basis was for his statement that the Government inherited the plan for phasing out Remploy workers; and if he will make a statement.

David Cameron: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 10 February 2011,  Official Report, column 421W.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Immigration and Asylum Tribunal

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the UK Border Agency plans to issue the visa to Mr Lateef Adejumo granted on appeal by the Immigration and Asylum Tribunal on 8 October 2010 under appeal number IA25223/2010; and what the reason is for the time taken to issue the visa.

Damian Green: holding answer 11 February 2011
	 The UK Border Agency processed Mr Adejumo's allowed appeal determination and issued him with the appropriate leave to remain on 2 February 2011. In respect of the delay in implementing the decision of the tribunal, the unit responsible for issuing the grant of leave processed Mr Adejumo's application in date order according to when it was received.

Academic Freedom

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps her Department is taking to address extremism on university campuses.

Nick Herbert: As part of the review of the Prevent strategy, currently under way, we are working with the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills on a package of measure to help universities manage the risks posed by extremism on campuses and support students who may be vulnerable to extremist messages. All higher education institutions in England have previously received guidance from the (then) Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills in 2008 on how to manage the risks posed by extremism on campuses and can draw upon ongoing support from the police and other local partners.

Asylum: Afghanistan

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress has been made in the tendering process for the proposed reintegration centre for failed Afghan child asylum seekers returned to Kabul.

Damian Green: The tender was for a range of services for failed asylum seekers of all ages, but included a specialist provision for young males aged 16 or 17. The bids have been evaluated and we expect to make a decision soon.

Asylum: Detainees

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum claimants were released from each detention centre and not removed in each of the last three years.

Damian Green: The information is not available for the requested years. Published information on reasons for leaving detention recommenced last quarter after being discontinued for technical reasons in September 2006. The following table, a subset of the latest published figures (Persons leaving detention Q3 2010), shows the number of people leaving detention held solely under Immigration Act powers, who had claimed asylum at some stage, by last place of detention for reasons other than removal from the UK in Q3 2010.
	The Home Office recommenced publishing information on the number of persons leaving detention, held solely under Immigration Act powers from Q3 2010. Q4 2010 figures will be available on 24 February 2011 from the Library of the House and from the Home Office's Research, Development and Statistics website at:
	www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration-asylum-stats.html
	
		
			  Persons leaving detention held solely under Immigration Act powers, who had claimed asylum at some stage, other than those removed from the UK, Q3 2010( 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6) 
			  Number of persons 
			   Granted leave to enter/remain( 7)  Granted temporary admission/release( 8)  Bailed( 9)  Other  Total detainees( 10) 
			  Place of last detention  
			  UK Border Agency removal centres  
			 Oakington Reception Centre * 320 25 5 350 
			 Harmondsworth - 225 20 10 255 
			 Yarl's Wood * 155 25 * 180 
			 Brook House - 80 40 * 120 
			 Campsfield House - 95 15 5 115 
			 Dover Immigration Removal Centre - 85 30 * 115 
			 Tinsley House - 85 10 * 100 
			 Dungavel * 55 20 5 75 
			 Colnbrook Immigration Removal Centre - 50 10 5 60 
			 Haslar - 40 15 - 50 
			 Lindholm - 25 10 * 35 
			   
			  UK Border Agency short-term holding facilities  
			 Colnbrook Short Term - 25 - 5 30 
			 Dover Harbour - 25 - - 25 
			 Pennine House - 15 - - 15 
			 Harwich - * - - * 
			 Total 5 1,275 215 35 1,530 
			 (1 )A detainee is counted if their period of detention comes to an end, this excludes detainees who have simply moved within the UK Border Agency detention estate. Some detainees may be recorded more than once if, for example, the person has left detention on more than one separate occasion in the time period shown, such as a person who has left detention for the purpose of a removal, but who has subsequently been re-detained and then leaves detention again.  (2) Figures rounded to the nearest 5 (- = 0, * = 1 or 2) and may not sum to the totals shown because of independent rounding. Figures exclude persons recorded as leaving detention from police cells and Prison Service establishments, if they are recorded as detained under both criminal and immigration powers.  (3) Figures include dependants.  (4) Persons detained under Immigration Act powers who are recorded as having sought asylum at some stage.  (5) Management information.  (6) Provisional figures.  (7) Short or long-term stay in the UK has been granted.  (8) Decision on the case has not been made.  (9) Detainee has applied for, and been granted, bail at a bail hearing.  (10) Figures are not directly comparable with previous figures on total persons leaving detention due to a revised methodology being used. If a person is moved from a removal centre to a police cell or Prison Service establishment and then leaves detention, this person will be included if the detention was solely under Immigration Act powers.

Bail

Richard Fuller: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people on bail were subject to  (a) restrictions on access to a telephone or the internet  (b) relocation other than to an immigration detention centre,  (c) a curfew,  (d) a ban on association with certain individuals and  (e) restricted areas of movement as a condition of their bail in the latest period for which figures are available.

Damian Green: As of 9 February 2011 there are 10 individuals who are currently subject to deportation proceedings and under strict bail conditions, such as those listed in my hon. Friend's question. These conditions are imposed by the Special Immigration Appeals Commission.

Community Relations: Finance

Robert Buckland: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much her Department has allocated under the Preventing Violent Extremism scheme in  (a) South Swindon constituency and  (b) each parliamentary constituency.

Nick Herbert: The Home Office does not allocate funding to the Prevent counter-terrorism programme according to parliamentary constituencies and funding specific information is not available  (a) in respect of the South Swindon constituency and  (b) each parliamentary constituency.
	However, in the financial year 2009-10, Swindon borough council received a Home Office grant of £50,108.37 for locally based Prevent initiatives, which included; a Prevent development worker; development of a referral process for vulnerable individuals; training and other Prevent related projects. This funding was not exclusive to the South Swindon constituency.
	Government funding for the Prevent counter-terrorism programme is currently provided by the Home Office, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG), which allocates funding for the Prevent counter-terrorism programme according to an Area Based Grant.

Crime Statistics Independent Review

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress has been made on her Department's review of crime statistics.

Nick Herbert: I refer my hon. Friend to a written ministerial statement given by the Secretary of State for the Home Department, my right hon. Friend, on 20 January 2011,  Official Report, columns 48-49WS, which announced her intention to move responsibility for the publication of crime statistics out of the Home Office to an independent body. We have asked for advice from Jil Matheson, the National Statistician, on this as part of a wider review she is leading to consider cost effective ways to improve the coverage and coherence of our official crime statistics. The National Statistician is due to report at the end of April 2011.

Crime: Drugs

Stuart Andrew: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps her Department plans to take to reduce the incidence of drug-related crime in Leeds.

James Brokenshire: holding answer 11 February 2011
	 The Department's key programme to tackle drug-related crime is the Drug Interventions Programme (DIP). A national programme across England and Wales, DIP is fully embedded within Leeds and is the main route for ensuring drug misusing adult offenders access treatment and support to reduce their offending. Research published by the Home Office in November 2007 found the overall volume of offending of a cohort of 7,727 individuals was 26% lower following identification through a positive DIP drug test in police custody. Around half the cohort showed a decline in offending of around 79% in the following six months.
	Local information on drug related offending in Leeds showed that proven offending in 2009-10 by a cohort of class A drug misusing offenders was 23% lower than predicted for that cohort, given their offending history.
	The Government will be enabling local areas to invest significantly in 2011-12 to support the management of drug-misusing offenders. Funding to support the Drug Interventions Programme and the management of drug misusing offenders is around £125 million in 2011-12. Building on this, the police and other local partners in Leeds are delivering an integrated offender management approach to target and manage priority and problematic offenders to reduce crime, including drug related crime.

Departmental Energy

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much her Department has saved in  (a) energy costs and  (b) carbon dioxide emissions since bringing in real time energy display.

Damian Green: The Department's real time energy display (RTD) was introduced in June 2010 and is one of a range of initiatives under way in order to reduce energy costs and carbon dioxide emissions. These include:
	improving heating, cooling and lighting controls and fittings;
	replacing/removing inefficient equipment;
	implementing good housekeeping measures;
	greening ICT; and
	raising staff awareness.
	In the six months since the RTD was installed, at 2 Marsham Street, we have achieved an approximate cost saving of £11,400 and reduced carbon dioxide emissions by 120 tonnes.
	While the savings have been achieved by a variety of actions the RTD has provided a focus for our efforts and useful feedback on our success. It has raised the awareness of energy efficiency in our building and provided transparency on our performance to a wide range of interested stakeholders.
	Full details can be found at:
	http://www.ecodriver.uk.com/HomeOffice/
	
		
			  Cost and carbon dioxide savings since the introduction of real time reporting 
			   Cost (£)  Carbon dioxide (tonnes) 
			 July to December 2009 413,885 3,590 
			 July to December 2010 402,450 3,470 
			 Saving 11,435 120 
			  Note:  The energy data for this period are subject to weather correction.

Departmental Training

Kris Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much her Department has spent on citizenship training in each of the last three years.

Damian Green: The Home Office has not spent any money on citizenship training in the last three years. Those applicants for citizenship who are required to demonstrate their knowledge of English and life in the UK can purchase the Life in the UK handbook or undertake a course in English for Speakers of Other Languages which also covers aspects of citizenship. Neither of these is subsidised by the Home Office.

Deportation: Offenders

Harriett Baldwin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many foreign national prisoners who have served their sentence are in prison awaiting removal from the UK.

Damian Green: UK Border Agency management information shows that in 2010, for an average month, approximately 635 foreign national prisoners were detained in prisons and 1,135 detained in immigration removal centres beyond the end of their custodial sentence while deportation was considered. These average figures are based on internal management information and are subject to change.

Drugs: Bolivia

Bob Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether she plans to publish the content of her formal objection to the Bolivian Government's proposal to amend the 1961 UN Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs to remove the ban on coca leaf chewing.

James Brokenshire: holding answer 11 February 2011
	A copy of the Note Verbale to the Secretary-General of the United Nations registering the Government's formal objection to the Bolivian Government's proposal to amend the UN Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs 1961 has been placed in the Library of the House.

Drugs: Bolivia

Bob Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent discussions she has had with representatives of the Bolivian Government on their proposed amendment to the 1961 UN Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs to remove the ban on coca leaf chewing.

James Brokenshire: holding answer 11 February 2011
	I met the Bolivian Foreign Minister, David Choquehuanca Céspedes, on 20 January 2011 to sign a UK/Bolivia Memorandum of Understanding on Drugs Cooperation. During the meeting we had a discussion on Bolivia's proposed amendment to the UN Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs 1961.

Faryadi Sarwar Zardad

Andrew Love: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate she has made of the cost to the public purse of the police investigation in the case involving Faryadi Sarwar Zardad; and if she will make a statement.

Nick Herbert: When Faryadi Sarwar Zardad was convicted of conspiracy to torture and conspiracy to take hostages and sentenced to 20 years imprisonment in July 2005, the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) estimated that the investigation had cost approximately £1 million, including salary costs of the detectives involved in the case.
	The MPS has a group of officers within the Counter Terrorism Command (CTC) who are the first point of contact for any allegations of war crimes received. These officers carry out this work alongside other duties. CTC officers follow guidelines on the investigation and prosecution of allegations of war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide and torture; the guidelines were revised and agreed with the Director of Public Prosecutions in 2010.
	When assessing allegations, officers work to secure corroborating evidence available in this country and abroad to meet the threshold for the CPS to advise whether charges should be brought. Even where a suspect is present in the UK, there is rarely enough corroborating evidence available in this country to meet the charging threshold. In such cases, onward referrals to other agencies, such as to the UK Border Agency, may be considered.

Immigrants: English Language

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what criteria are applied by the UK Border Agency to approve English language tests for entry into the UK under  (a) Tier 1,  (b) Tier 2 and  (c) Tier 4 of the points-based system.

Damian Green: The criteria used to assess English language tests for entry into the UK under  (a) tier 1,  (b) tier 2 and  (c) tier 4 of the points-based system is available on the UK Border Agency website.
	The document will be placed in the House Libraries and may be found at the following website address:
	www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/employers/esol-providers/#header1

Immigrants: English Language

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many individuals used each English language test approved by the UK Border Agency for entry into the UK under  (a) Tier 1,  (b) Tier 2 and  (c) Tier 4 of the points-based system to meet their visa requirement in the latest period for which figures are available.

Damian Green: The information is not centrally recorded in the format requested and could be obtained only by a manual check of individual case records at disproportionate cost.
	It is a requirement of the points-based system that relevant English language proficiency must be evidenced. The UK Border Agency records whether those entering the UK satisfy this criterion. The UK Border Agency does not record which English language test provider administered the test.

Investor Visas

William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate she has made of the number of investor visas her Department will award to migrants in each of the next four years; and if she will make a statement.

Damian Green: In 2009 the routes for investors and entrepreneurs accounted for fewer than 300 people. We are in the process of revising the investor route to provide an accelerated route to settlement for larger investments. This change is designed to make the route more attractive to high net worth individuals and increase the number of investors. We will publish details of the changes and an impact assessment shortly.

Investor Visas

William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what her Department's policy is on the granting of investor visas to migrants; and if she will make a statement.

Damian Green: Migrants applying for a visa under the Tier 1 (Investor) route must have access to at least £1 million of their own funds, or £2 million in personal assets and £1 million in a loan, that is disposable and in a financial institution for investment in the UK by way of UK Government bonds, share capital or loan capital in active and trading companies that are registered in the UK.

Migrant Workers

Karen Lumley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if her Department will assess the merits of revising the immigration rules to enable more trained doctors and healthcare professionals from outside the EU to work in the UK.

Damian Green: The Government have recently announced changes to the rules governing employment of skilled workers from outside the EU, and we are confident these meet the needs of the health care sector.

Migrant Workers

Karen Lumley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment her Department has made of the effect of changes in immigration rules on the numbers of trained doctors and healthcare professionals from outside the EU able to work in the UK.

Damian Green: The Government have recently announced changes to the rules governing employment of skilled workers from outside the EU, and we are confident these meet the needs of the health care sector.

Migrant Workers

Richard Fuller: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications have been made for visas under Tier 5 (religious workers) of the points-based visa scheme in each of the last three years.

Damian Green: Tier 5 of the Points-based system (PBS) was introduced on 27 November 2008 to cover entry clearance visas for temporary workers and youth mobility. In 2008, there were 10 applications for entry clearance visas under the Tier 5 (religious workers) category, and in 2009 there were 1,290 applications. Figures are based on management information and are rounded to the nearest 5.
	Figures on applications for entry clearance visas by category are published annually in Supplementary Table 1c of Control of Immigration: Statistics United Kingdom available from the Home Office's Research, Development and Statistics website at:
	www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration-asylum-stats.html
	Figures for 2010 are due to published in Control of Immigration: Statistics United Kingdom 2010 in August 2011.

Police

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what arrangements she is making for the appointment of deputies to elected police commissioners.

Nick Herbert: holding answer 11 February 2011
	 It is not for the Government to decide whether or not police and crime commissioners should have a deputy. Commissioners will be able to appoint staff, including a deputy if they wish.

Police

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether it is her policy that there should be a legal requirement for a chief constable to co-operate with an elected police commissioner.

Nick Herbert: holding answer 11 February 2011
	 The Police Reform and Social Responsibility Bill empowers police and crime commissioners to hold chief constables to account for the exercise of all functions.

Police and Crime Commissioners

Mark Tami: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what her Department's estimate is of the cost of electing police and crime commissioners in each police authority area.

Nick Herbert: holding answer 11 February 2011
	As stated in the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Bill's impact assessment, elections across England and Wales for police and crime commissioners are estimated at £50 million in 2012. These estimates are based on costs of other national elections, and are therefore not broken down by police force area.

Police Stations: Temporary Accommodation

Ann Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many children and young people stayed overnight in police stations because of a lack of available emergency accommodation in the latest period for which information is available.

Nick Herbert: The police and local authorities have a statutory duty to safeguard all children and young people within their area. Although the information requested is not collected centrally it is for local authorities to work with the police to decide on the most appropriate and effective form of emergency accommodation provision in their area for all young people who find themselves without a safe place to stay.

Police: Accountability

Mark Tami: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which  (a) individuals and  (b) organisations she consulted on the likely level of costs which would be incurred by electing police and crime commissioners.

Nick Herbert: holding answer 8 February 2011
	The Home Office has consulted widely on the Police and Crime Commissioners policy, including many detailed conversations with the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO), the Association of Police Authorities (APA), the Electoral Commission, the Association of Electoral Administrators and other Government Departments. While none of these conversations have focused solely on costs, the information and advice provided informed the assessment of costs that was published with the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Bill last December.

Police: Accountability

Mark Tami: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions she has had with the Welsh Assembly Government of the costs of holding elections for police and crime commissioners for each police authority in Wales.

Nick Herbert: holding answer 8 February 2011
	The Home Office has had many detailed conversations with Welsh Assembly Government Ministers and officials on the police and crime commissioners policy. While none of these conversations have focused solely on costs, the information and advice provided informed the assessment of costs that was published with the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Bill last December.

Police: Investigations

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what recent discussions she has had with  (a) the Association of Chief Police Officers and ( b) the Metropolitan Police on the future deployment of undercover police officers to investigate protest organisations and individuals not engaged in terrorist activities; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  what guidance her Department has issued to police forces on  (a) police officers engaging in personal relationships with those they are investigating and  (b) the maximum length of time an officer assigned to undercover duties should remain undercover; and if she will make a statement;
	(3)  under what powers police forces sanction the deployment of undercover police officers to investigate protest organisations and individuals not engaged in terrorist activities; and if she will make a statement;
	(4)  what criteria police forces use to determine whether to deploy undercover police officers to investigate protest organisations and individuals not engaged in terrorist activities; and if she will make a statement;
	(5)  what means police forces use to monitor the activities and effectiveness of undercover police officers investigating protest organisations and individuals not engaged in terrorist activities; and if she will make a statement;
	(6)  what methodology is used to assess the effectiveness of undercover police operations used to investigate protest organisations and individuals not engaged in terrorist activities; and if she will make a statement.

Nick Herbert: The Home Office routinely discusses a range of policing issues with the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) and the Metropolitan police.
	The deployment of undercover police officers is regulated by the Regulation of Investigatory Powers (RIPA) Act 2000, within which covert investigatory techniques can be used for approved purposes such as the prevention or detection of crime, national security or public safety. Police will evaluate whether to deploy undercover officers, and monitor the effectiveness of their deployment, according to these approved purposes.
	The Home Office publishes codes of practice on how practitioners in public authorities may best apply the RIPA regulations. In addition, the independent Office of Surveillance Commissioners provides procedural and interpretational advice and guidance in connection with their regular inspections of the public authorities using RIPA.
	HM Inspectorate of Constabulary is carrying out a review of the operational accountability of undercover work by the National Public Order Intelligence Unit (NPIOU) and how intelligence activity is authorised in accordance with the law, including consideration of the proportionality of covert tactics.

Police: Investigations

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how much has been spent by police forces on undercover police operations to investigate organisations not engaged in terrorist activities in each of the last 10 years; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  how much has been spent on the protection of former undercover officers that have investigated protest organisations and individuals not engaged in terrorist activities in the latest period for which figures are available; and if she will make a statement.

Nick Herbert: The Home Office does not hold this information. The deployment of resources for undercover policing is an operational matter for chief officers.

Police: Manpower

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people are employed by each police authority in England; and how many of those are solely under the direction and control of the authority.

Nick Herbert: holding answer 11 February 2011
	The latest available figures collected by the Home Office are for police officers and staff working in each police force in England as at 30 September 2010. They are shown in the following tables. Separate figures for people employed by each police authority or those under the direct control of police authorities are not collected by the Home Office.
	
		
			  Police officer strength by police force in each English Government office region (full-time equivalents)( 1) 
			  Police officers (FTE) 
			  Police force area  Strength as at 30 September 2010 
			  North East 7,301 
			 Cleveland 1,694 
			 Durham 1,463 
			 Northumbria 4,144 
			   
			  North West 19,306 
			 Cheshire 2,148 
			 Cumbria 1,220 
			 Greater Manchester 7,976 
			 Lancashire 3,549 
			 Merseyside 4,414 
			   
			  Yorkshire and the Humber 12,102 
			 Humberside 2,001 
			 North Yorkshire 1,452 
			 South Yorkshire 2,977 
			 West Yorkshire 5,673 
			   
			  East Midlands 9,246 
			 Derbyshire 2,076 
			 Leicestershire 2,258 
			 Lincolnshire 1,197 
			 Northamptonshire 1,337 
			 Nottinghamshire 2,379 
			   
			  West Midlands 13,853 
			 Staffordshire 2,116 
			 Warwickshire 949 
			 West Mercia 2,303 
			 West Midlands 8,485 
			   
			  Eastern 11,318 
			 Bedfordshire 1,242 
			 Cambridgeshire 1,441 
			 Essex 3,639 
			 Hertfordshire 2,092 
			 Norfolk 1,631 
			 Suffolk 1,272 
			   
			  London 33,778 
			 London, City of 878 
			 Metropolitan Police 32,900 
			   
			  South East 16,897 
			 Hampshire 3,702 
			 Kent 3,741 
			 Surrey 1,864 
			 Sussex 3,177 
			 Thames Valley 4,412 
			   
			  South West 10,701 
			 Avon and Somerset 3,264 
			 Devon and Cornwall 3,526 
			 Dorset 1,478 
			 Gloucestershire 1,295 
			 Wiltshire 1,138 
			 Total England 134,502 
			 (1) This table contains full-time equivalent figures that have been rounded to the nearest whole number. Because of rounding, there may be an apparent discrepancy between totals and the sums of the constituent items.  Source: Home Office using data received from police forces via the Annual Data Requirement. 
		
	
	
		
			  Police staff strength (including PCSOs and designated officers) by police force in each English Government office region (full-time equivalents)( 1) 
			  Police officers (FTE) 
			  Police force area  Strength as at 30 September 2010 
			  North East 4,452 
			 Cleveland 903 
			 Durham 1,062 
			 Northumbria 2,486 
			   
			  North West 12,587 
			 Cheshire 1,729 
			 Cumbria 906 
			 Greater Manchester 4,938 
			 Lancashire 2,319 
			 Merseyside 2.695 
			   
			  Yorkshire and the Humber 10,217 
			 Humberside 1,965 
			 North Yorkshire 1,340 
			 South Yorkshire 2,721 
			 West Yorkshire 4,192 
			   
			  East Midlands 7,203 
			 Derbyshire 1,504 
			 Leicestershire 1,476 
			 Lincolnshire 1,045 
			 Northamptonshire 1,299 
			 Nottinghamshire 1,878 
			   
			  West Midlands 8,695 
			 Staffordshire 1,520 
			 Warwickshire 881 
			 West Mercia 1,966 
			 West Midlands 4,328 
			   
			  Eastern 9,034 
			 Bedfordshire 1,000 
			 Cambridgeshire 1,218 
			 Essex 2,482 
			 Hertfordshire 1,856 
			 Norfolk 1,346 
			 Suffolk 1,132 
			   
			  London 19,163 
			 London, City of 373 
			 Metropolitan Police 18,790 
			   
			  South East 13,991 
			 Hampshire 2,747 
			 Kent 2,936 
			 Surrey 2,336 
			 Sussex 2,511 
			 Thames Valley 3,461 
			   
			  South West 7,885 
			 Avon and Somerset 2,319 
			 Devon and Cornwall 2.378 
			 Dorset 1,203 
			 Gloucestershire 866 
			 Wiltshire 1,119 
			   
			 Total England 93,227 
			 (1) This table contains full-time equivalent figures that have been rounded to the nearest whole number. Because of rounding, there may be an apparent discrepancy between totals and the sums of the constituent items. Source: Home Office using data received from police forces via the Annual Data Requirement.

Police: Misconduct

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the percentage change was in the number of allegations of misconduct recorded against police forces in England and Wales between 2003-04 and 2008-09; and what assessment she has made of the reason for trends in the number of such allegations.

Nick Herbert: The Home Office does not hold this information, which is a matter for the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC).

Police: Pensions

Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assumptions she has made in respect of the dropout rate from the Police Pension Scheme attributable to  (a) potential increases in contributions and  (b) its indexation against the consumer prices index; what assessment she has made of the effect of the dropout rate on the future viability of this fund; and if she will make a statement.

Nick Herbert: At the spending review the Office for Budget Responsibility estimated that some additional members, amounting to 1% of the value of the paybill, would opt-out of all the public service schemes as a result of the proposed increase in pension contributions.
	Further consideration of the effects of this policy on the opt-out rate will be made as part of the process of determining the distribution of increases in contributions across members of the Police Pension Schemes. As a principle, the Government have already committed to implementing contribution increases in a progressive way so that higher earners pay higher rates than lower earners.
	No assessment has been made of the number of additional members that might opt-out as a result of the change in indexation.

Police: Pensions

Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the pension entitlement will be of a member of the Police Pension Scheme who retires after 30 years' full-time service on a salary of  (a) £10,000,  (b) £15,000,  (c) £20,000,  (d) £25,000,  (e) £30,000,  (f) £40,000 and  (g) £50,000 if the pension is uprated in line with (i) the retail prices index and (ii) the consumer prices index.

Nick Herbert: There are two pension schemes that apply to police officers. An officer in the Police Pension Scheme 1987 would have a maximum pension of 40/60ths of final salary after 30 years' full time service. There is no automatic lump sum in the 1987 scheme-an officer can choose to exchange some of his or her pension for a lump sum.
	An officer in the Police Pension Scheme 2006 would have a pension of 30/70ths of final salary and a lump sum of 120/70ths of final salary after 30 years' full time service.
	Pensions at retirement are the same regardless of the index used for uprating.

Police: Pensions

Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of active members of the Police Pension Scheme earn  (a) between £10,000 and £15,000,  (b) between £15,000 and £20,000,  (c) between £20,000 and £25,000,  (d) between £25,000 and £30,000 and  (e) £30,000 and more.

Nick Herbert: The police pension schemes are locally administered by the relevant police authority; the Government do not hold comprehensive data on the schemes. There is some limited data as at 31 March 2008 collected by the Government Actuary's Department. The data on the earnings of active members are not available in the earnings breakdowns requested. However, the following table has the available earnings breakdown of active members as at 31 March 2008:
	
		
			   Active members 
			  Pensionable annual earnings  Number  Percentage 
			 £0 to £20,999 0 0 
			 £21,000 to £23,999 4,898 3 
			 £24,000 to £26,999 16,759 12 
			 £27,000 to £29,999 24,513 17 
			 £30,000 plus 97,456 68

Police: Pensions

Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the administration costs of the Police Pension Scheme are for 2010-11; and what such costs were in each of the last 12 years.

Nick Herbert: The requested data are not held centrally.

Stop and Search: Dartford

Gareth Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many stop and searches were carried out in Dartford constituency in the last five years.

Nick Herbert: The data reported to the Home Office are not broken down below police force area level, so information for Dartford constituency is not available.
	The table provided has the total number of stop and searches carried out in Kent from 2004-05 to 2008-09.
	Data for 2009-10 are due to be published in April 2011.
	
		
			  Number of persons and vehicles searched under stop and search powers( 1)  in Kent, 2004-05 to 2008-09 
			   Number of stop  and searches 
			 2004-05 11.821 
			 2005-06 12,565 
			 2006-07 14,186 
			 2007-08 15,784 
			 2008-09 17,777 
			 (1) Includes searches of persons or vehicles under section 1 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, Section 60 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1984 and Section 44 of the Terrorism Act 2000.

Surveillance

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate she has made of the average time taken by a police officer to fill in a form for the authorisation of surveillance required by the Surveillance Commissioners; and whether she has any plans to reduce this time.

Nick Herbert: The Home Office has not made such an estimate, but is working with the Association of Chief Police Officers, HM Inspectorate of Constabularies and the Office of Surveillance Commissioners to identify and address areas of unnecessary bureaucracy associated with police use of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 ('RIPA'). This includes an examination of the forms used by the police to see whether these can be amended for the purposes of reducing police bureaucracy without jeopardising necessary human rights safeguards.

Terrorism: Convictions and Offences

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many persons have been convicted for offences relating to terrorism in each year since 1 January 2001.

Nick Herbert: The number of persons convicted for terrorism offences in each year since 2001 is contained in the following table.
	
		
			  Outcomes for persons charged with terrorism related offences 
			   Year of arrest  
			   2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09  2009-10  Total 
			 Charged 22 63 50 34 45 75 51 39 25 404 
			 Prosecuted 19 47 39 28 42 67 42 34 14 332 
			 Convicted 12 34 21 23 35 50 29 24 9 237 
			 Percentage currently convicted 55 54 42 68 78 67 57 62 36 59 
		
	
	The Home Office collates and publishes statistics on arrests and outcomes under the Terrorism Act 2000 (Operation of Police Powers under the Terrorism Act 2000 and Subsequent Legislation: Arrests, Outcomes and Stops and Searches). The link to the latest edition of the publication is provided as follows:
	http://rds.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs10/hosb1810.pdf

Terrorism: Ethnic Groups

David Lammy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the self-defined ethnicity is of each person  (a) examined and  (b) detained under the provisions of schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act 2000 since its entry into force.

Nick Herbert: Information on the ethnicity of those examined under schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act 2000 has been collected by the police service since April 2009. Initially these data were collected on the basis of officer definition. Since April 2010, they have been collected on the basis of self-definition, in line with other ethnicity data collected by the police service. We expect to publish the self-defined ethnicity information for the period April 2010 to March 2011 in autumn 2011.
	The officer defined ethnicity of those examined under schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act 2000, throughout the UK, for the period April 2009-March 2010 is set out in the following table:
	
		
			  Ethnicity of those examined April 2009-March 2010 
			  Ethnic origin  Proportion of examinees (percentage) 
			 White 46 
			 Mixed race 2 
			 Asian 27 
			 African/Caribbean 7 
			 Chinese and other 19 
		
	
	The use of schedule 7 is covered by a code of practice which advises that it would be unlawful to select someone based solely on their perceived ethnicity or religion. The code of practice also advises officers on the criteria for selecting individuals for examination and that it should be based on known and suspected sources of terrorism and groups individuals involved in terrorist activity.

UK Border Agency MP Hotline

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for what reason the UK Border Agency MP Hotline was not open on 3 February 2011.

Damian Green: The UK Border Agency's MPs' Enquiry Line was closed on 3 February 2011 to allow staff to attend a training and planning day. During this closure a recorded message directed callers to their regional MP account manager as an alternative source of information. The Enquiry Line is open Monday to Thursday 09.00-17.00 and Friday 10.30-17.00, including during parliamentary recesses.

UK Border Agency MP Hotline

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for how many days the UK Border Agency MP Hotline was closed in each of the last 12 months; and for what reasons in each case.

Damian Green: The information is in the following table:
	
		
			  Date  Reason for closure 
			 12 April to 7 May 2010 Pre-election period-closure in line with Cabinet Office guidance 
			 2 December 2010 Power failure in building 
			 24 December 2010 Civil Service Privilege Day 
			 3 February 2011 Staff training and planning day

Yarl's Wood Detention Centre

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what contract compliance is undertaken in relation to Serco Group plc's contract at Yarl's Wood immigration removal centre; and if she will make a statement.

Damian Green: All Immigration Removal Centres operated by the private sector, including Yarl's Wood, have their contracts managed by a central commercial team. The UK Border Agency has a team of staff based in each centre to monitor day to day contract delivery and compliance. Meetings take place with the centre manager at an operational level on a weekly basis and on a commercial level on a quarterly basis.

Yarl's Wood Detention Centre

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether she has received any reports of suspension of staff employed by Serco at Yarl's Wood immigration removal centre for alleged misconduct; and if she will make a statement.

Damian Green: UK Border Agency officials have been informed by Serco that two staff employed at Yarl's Wood Immigration Removal Centre were suspended pending the outcomes of investigations into unconnected allegations of misconduct. One investigation is ongoing; the other has concluded and the officer involved has returned to work.
	The UK Border Agency expects the highest standards of behaviour from its staff and contractors. Where an officer is found to have acted inappropriately, he or she will face sanctions. In the most serious of cases, this can ultimately lead to their certification to work as detention custody officers being revoked.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Departmental Public Expenditure

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport how much Barnett consequential funding his Department has provided to each devolved administration in  (a) 2010-11 to date and  (b) each of the last three years; and with which programmes such funding was associated.

John Penrose: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport does not provide Barnett consequential funding.

Hearing Impairment

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport how many meetings he has had with representatives of the deaf community since his appointment.

John Penrose: To date the Secretary of State has not held any specific meetings with representatives of the deaf community.

Internet: Advertising

Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what estimate he has made of the monetary value of the internet search advertising market in the last year for which figures are available.

Edward Vaizey: The latest full year figures for the UK are from 2009. The Internet Advertising Bureau/PwC Adspend study shows that UK search advertising revenue was £2.148 billion in 2009. More information can be found at the following website:
	http://www.iabuk.net/media/images/iabresearch_adspend _adspendfctshth2009_6332.pdf

Ofcom: Telecommunications

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what recent representations he has received from Ofcom on its research into relay services.

Edward Vaizey: Ofcom has not made any formal representations on its recently published market research, but the Ofcom project team dealing with this issue are in regular contact with officials at DCMS about the implementation of all aspects of telecoms policy in the UK.

Press Complaints Commission

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport whether he has made an assessment of the independence from media organisations of the Press Complaints Commission.

Edward Vaizey: No formal assessment has been made.

Press Complaints Commission

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport if he will review the composition of the membership of the Press Complaints Commission.

Edward Vaizey: The Press Complaints Commission is an independent body. Government have no role or remit in appointing its members. As a body concerned with self-regulation, there is good reason for it to have members from the industry whose regulation it oversees, but these form a minority. 10 of the 17 commissioners-including the chair-have no involvement with the press.

Press Complaints Commission

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what recent discussions he has had with representatives of the Press Complaints Commission on telephone hacking and blagging allegations.

Edward Vaizey: The Press Complaints Commission (PCC) recently wrote to the Department setting out what steps it is taking on this matter. The Commission has established a Review Committee of Commissioners, comprising a former chief constable, a law professor, and an editor from outside Fleet street, to review new evidence and make recommendations. It will also review the PCC's own previous work in this area.
	Phone hacking is, of course, a criminal offence, and while it is right that the PCC review matters, we must also be mindful that the Crown Prosecution Service is currently conducting a comprehensive assessment of all material in the possession of the Metropolitan Police Service relating to phone hacking.

Public Libraries

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what steps he is taking to comply with section 1(1) of the Public Libraries and Museums Act 1964 to promote the improvement of the public library service.

Edward Vaizey: holding answer 11 February 2011
	We continue to drive the improvement and development of public library services through the Future Libraries Programme (FLP). The programme was announced in July and is led by the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA) and the Local Government Association. They are supporting over 30 authorities participating in the programme to explore options that will help them to deliver the front line services communities want and need more efficiently. Learning from the 10 pilot projects will be shared widely to support non-participating authorities to deliver their services more efficiently too. In addition to the FLP the MLA promotes best practice and supports local authorities to develop their library services. Arts Council England will assume responsibility for the library service improvement and development agenda, following the abolition of the MLA.

Telecommunications: Hearing Impairment

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what steps he is taking to increase the range, quality and availability of telecommunications equipment for individuals who are  (a) deaf,  (b) deafblind and  (c) hard of hearing.

Edward Vaizey: As part of its implementation of the European Framework on Electronic Communications, Government are supporting deaf, deafblind and hard of hearing telecoms users by pursuing the duty to promote the availability of terminal equipment suitable for disabled users through the e-Accessibility Forum, which draws together Government, industry and the voluntary sector to explore and understand issues of e-accessibility and develop and share best practice across all sectors.
	One of the group's workstreams includes looking at what consumer technology and digital equipment is on the market and how issues surrounding affordability and availability of assistive technologies can be overcome.

Telecommunications: Sign Language

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what steps he plans to take towards ensuring that there is equal access to telecommunications for users of British Sign Language in the next 12 months.

Edward Vaizey: The revised provisions of the EU Electronic Communications Framework, which include revisions to the Universal Services Directive, provide for member states to empower national regulatory authorities (Ofcom in the UK) to specify, where appropriate, requirements to ensure that disabled end-users:
	(a) have access to electronic communications services equivalent to that enjoyed by the majority of end-users; and
	(b) benefit from the choice of undertakings and services available to the majority of end-users.
	In order to fully implement this provision, officials in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport have proposed making changes to section 51 of the Communications Act 2003 to clarify Ofcom's power to impose a general condition in relation to equivalence. In addition, they are further analysing the responses to the recent Government public consultation on proposals to implement the revised framework, including article 23a of the USD directive on equivalence of access and choice for disabled end-users.
	Ofcom are also undertaking a review of relay service provision for hearing- and speech-impaired users of electronic communications, which includes video relay.

The Connected Kingdom: How the Internet is Transforming the UK Economy

Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport if he will assess the conclusions and recommendations of the report The Connected Kingdom: How the Internet is Transforming the UK Economy.

Edward Vaizey: We will take into account the findings of this report when developing policy on the internet economy, including the current digital and creative industries growth review which will look at potential opportunities and barriers to growth for these sectors.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Common Fisheries Policy

Sheryll Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether the new proposal for a basic regulation on the Common Fisheries Policy will consider  (a) fish discards and  (b) the role of fishermen in drawing up local management plans.

Richard Benyon: We are calling for radical reform of the common fisheries policy (CFP), and are pressing the European Commission to include measures to  (a) tackle discards by providing the incentives and regulatory framework to enable us to catch less but land more of it, for example replacing landing based quota with catch quotas; and  (b) simplify and decentralise the CFP to allow those closest to fisheries a role to input into regional management plans.

EU Cotton Subsidies

Naomi Long: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will seek reform of EU cotton subsidies in the forthcoming negotiations on reform of the Common Agricultural Policy.

James Paice: I believe that the time has come for the last remaining direct support to the EU cotton sector to be decoupled and the UK will be pursuing this end as part of our negotiating position in the forthcoming common agricultural policy reform round.

Members: Correspondence

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the Minister of State for Agriculture and Food intends to reply to the letter of 1 December 2010 from the hon. Member for Hartlepool on the Not in my cuppa and cows belong in fields campaigns.

James Paice: A reply to the letter in question was sent to the hon. Member's parliamentary office on 15 December 2010. I have arranged for a copy of my reply to be sent to the same address.

Sugar Beet

Thomas Docherty: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions she has had with the Rural Payments Agency in relation to the early release of single farm payments to sugar beet growers.

James Paice: holding answer 7 February 2011
	Over 85% of claimants under the 2010 single payment scheme were paid in the opening month of the payment window. The remaining payments are being made as soon as the Rural Payments Agency completes the regulatory checks on the claims concerned. There have been no specific discussions in relation to sugar beet growers. Any cases of hardship among those, whether beet growers or farmers, awaiting payment, will be considered under well-established procedures operated by the agency.

NORTHERN IRELAND

HM Coastguard Proposals for Modernisation

Margaret Ritchie: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Transport on the HM Coastguard Proposals for Modernisation consultation.

Hugo Swire: The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, my right hon. Friend the Member for North Shropshire (Mr Paterson), has invited the Transport Minister with responsibility for the maritime sector to visit the Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centre in Bangor later this month. This will enable him to consider the service provided by the centre before decisions are made on how best to modernise the coastguard service and introduce changes that will benefit the maritime industry and the public.

National Asset Management Agency

Margaret Ritchie: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what recent discussions he has had with the  (a) Irish Minister for Finance and  (b) Chancellor of the Exchequer on assets held in Northern Ireland by the Republic of Ireland's National Asset Management Agency.

Hugo Swire: The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, my right hon. Friend the Member for North Shropshire (Mr Paterson), and I discuss these matters from time to time with Treasury Ministers, ministerial colleagues in the Northern Ireland Executive and with the Irish Government. These matters were also raised at a meeting that the Secretary of State held with the Financial Secretary to the Treasury, the hon. Member for Fareham (Mr Hoban), in Belfast with Northern Ireland Ministers on 24 November 2010.

Northern Irish Economy

Margaret Ritchie: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he plans to publish the draft paper on the Northern Irish economy; and what his timetable is for implementation of the recommendations of that report.

Hugo Swire: The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, the right hon. Member for North Shropshire (Mr Paterson), the Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, the hon. Member for South West Hertfordshire (Mr Gauke), and I are working closely with the First and Deputy First Ministers and the Ministers for Finance and for Enterprise in the Northern Ireland Executive. We aim to publish the Government consultation paper on rebalancing the Northern Ireland economy soon.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Belize: Overseas Aid

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what  (a) projects and  (b) organisations in Belize received funding from his Department in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

Alan Duncan: In the past five years, Belize has received debt cancellation from DFID under the Commonwealth Debt Initiative, as well as assistance through the Belize Strategic Fund (BSF). The BSF, which ended in July 2008, provided support to the Government of Belize to implement its Medium Term Economic Strategy and National Poverty Elimination Strategy and Action Plan. Support from the BSF was provided to the Auditor General's Office and Ministries of Economic Development, Finance and Human Development, as well as through a non-governmental organisation (NGO), The Society for the Promotion of Education and Research (SPEAR).
	Belize currently benefits from DFID Caribbean's regional programme, including support to the Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre and the Caribbean Aid for Trade Trust Fund (CARTFund), through which a project at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade (MOFAFT) to facilitate the implementation of the Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME) and Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) in Belize has just been agreed. The MOFAFT also recently received support from DFID (through the Inter-American Development Bank) to develop its Aid for Trade Strategy.

Departmental Allowances

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what allowances are available to officials in his Department working overseas.

Alan Duncan: Information on allowances available to Department for International Development (DFID) officials who work overseas can be found on the DFID website at:
	http://www.dfid.gov.uk/About-DFID/Finance-and-performance/Resource-accounts/Allowances-and-Expenses-Incurred-by-DFID-Employees/

Departmental Energy

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what reduction his Department has made in  (a) energy costs and  (b) carbon emissions since the implementation of a real time energy display.

Alan Duncan: The Department for International Development (DFID) has reduced its  (a) energy costs by 18% and  (b) carbon emissions from energy usage by 6% in its two UK offices, since the introduction of real time energy recording.
	These reductions are based on a comparison of consumption and expenditure over the period July 2010, when the real time system was implemented, to the end of January 2011, compared to the corresponding period in the previous financial year.

Israel: Agriculture

Gordon Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether he has had discussions with his Israeli counterpart on international co-operation in agriculture technology relating to farming in arid conditions.

Alan Duncan: No, I have not had any discussions with my Israeli counterpart on international co-operation in agriculture technology relating to farming in arid conditions.
	The UK currently has no direct co-operation with Israel on international development. Having recently become a member of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), we hope Israel will consider joining the OECD's Development Assistance Committee.

Sudan: Human Rights

Lindsay Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what his most recent assessment is of the humanitarian situation in north Sudan; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Mitchell: We remain concerned about the security and humanitarian situation in Darfur, where 40,000 people have been displaced by recent fighting. We are calling on the Government of Sudan and all armed groups to allow UNAMID and aid workers full and unhindered access.
	There are serious humanitarian challenges in Eastern Sudan and in the Three Areas-Blue Nile, Southern Kordofan and Abyei. The UK is working multilaterally and bilaterally to help address these.
	We are closely monitoring the situation of migrants moving from North to South. The UK has worked with the UN and partners to support contingency planning to deal with this, including providing £15 million to the emergency element of the Common Humanitarian Fund.

Turks and Caicos Islands: Loans

Harriet Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the implications for development policy of the decision to grant a loan guarantee to the Turks and Caicos Islands.

Andrew Mitchell: The Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI), like all British Overseas Territories (OTs), is constitutionally dependent on the UK and the UN Charter obliges the UK Government to promote the well-being of the inhabitants of these territories.
	Successive White Papers since the 1970s have committed HMG to meet the reasonable assistance needs of the OTs. The International Development Act 2002, enacted by the previous Government, specifically exempts the OTs from the poverty reduction criteria that apply to the rest of the Department for International Development's (DFID's) aid budget.
	This Government fully intends to stand by their commitments to the OTs. We will not let TCI fall victim to financial ruin. If DFID had to provide money in the event that the guarantee is called this would not count as official development assistance (ODA).

Turks and Caicos Islands: Loans

Harriet Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development with reference to the departmental minute of 3 February 2011 on the contingent liability arising from a UK guarantee of a commercial loan to the Turks and Caicos Islands, what plans he has to set conditions for the loan guarantee to the Turks and Caicos Islands should the initial conditions for the provision of the guarantee be met.

Andrew Mitchell: The key conditions for the Department for International Development (DFID) guarantee of commercial lending to the Turks and Caicos Islands Government (TCIG) are that the TCIG strengthens its capacity and systems to manage its public finances, and achieves a fiscal surplus in the financial year ending March 2013.
	These are continuing, not only initial, conditions. Further conditions are not needed because the UK Government currently intends to retain sufficient financial control over public finances in order to ensure that TCIG emerges from its financial crisis as soon as possible, and that the loan guarantee arrangement is no longer needed.

Turks and Caicos Islands: Loans

Harriet Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what development objectives for the Turks and Caicos Islands will be achieved by the proposed loan guarantee; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Mitchell: The main objective of the proposed loan guarantee is to enable the Turks and Caicos Islands Government (TCIG) to have access to commercial lending which would not be available without the guarantee. This lending will allow the time TCIG needs to achieve a fiscal surplus by applying the right economic measures.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Affordable Housing: Peterborough

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will take steps to support the development of intermediate affordable housing in Peterborough; and if he will make a statement.

Grant Shapps: I have today announced the publication of the Framework for the Government's Affordable Homes Programme for 2011-15. The programme is designed to support the delivery of up to 150,000 affordable homes through a new investment model which is giving greater flexibilities to social housing providers on the use of assets combined with investment of almost £4.5 billion over the next four years. The Framework document invites bids from providers who are interested in participating.
	Affordable Rent will be the principal element of the new programme. Affordable Rent homes will be made available to tenants at up to a maximum of 80% of market rent and allocated in the same way as social housing is at present. There is flexibility within the programme for providers to include provision of affordable home ownership, through both shared ownership and equity loans, to meet the needs and priorities of local communities such as Peterborough where this also offers value for money and increases housing supply.

Departmental Carbon Emissions

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much his Department spent on carbon offsetting in each of the last three years; and to which companies payments for carbon offsetting were made in each such year.

Bob Neill: The Department for Communities and Local Government has spent the following amounts on carbon offsetting in each of the last three years:
	
		
			   Spend (£) 
			 2007-08 2,338 
			 2008-09 2,657 
			 2009-10 2,850 
		
	
	The Department purchases all of its offsets through the Government Carbon Offsetting Fund (GCOF). GCOF purchases Gold Standard, or equivalent, Certified Emissions Reduction credits under the Kyoto Protocol's Clean Development Mechanism.

Departmental Furniture

Aidan Burley: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will place in the Library copies of each invoice from Kinnarps (UK) Ltd to the Audit Commission in respect of furniture purchases in the last 12 months.

Bob Neill: This is an operational matter for the Audit Commission and I have asked the chief executive of the Audit Commission to write to my hon. Friend direct.
	I would comment that, together with the answer to the hon. Member of 31 January 2011,  Official Report, column 528W, this is a prime example of how the public sector can deliver better value for money, without affecting frontline services, by improving value for money on procurement.
	 Letter from Eugene Sullivan, dated 14 February 2011:
	Your Parliamentary Question has been passed to me to reply.
	The Audit Commission has received a total of 32 invoices from Kinnarps (UK) Ltd in respect of furniture purchases in the last 12 months. Kinnarps were awarded a contract to supply office furniture following a full tendering process. The contract was awarded in July 2007 and expires in July 2011.
	In March 2010, our Leeds office moved to new premises, making an important contribution to saving money and reducing the Commission's carbon footprint. All storage and the majority of meeting room furniture was existing re-used furniture as it was still fit for purpose. Some seating was re-used but reupholstered. Other seating was replaced where meeting rooms would also be used as working areas and would need fully adjustable operator chairs. Some other new office furniture was purchased. This was predominantly 'bench style' desks with a much smaller footprint than the desks that were in our previous office and IT sundries. Personal lockers were also purchased to support new ways of working where individuals share desks. It was partly the investment in smaller footprint furniture that allowed us to reduce the overall size of the office from 13,000 sq ft to 8,000 sq ft. The projected overall saving, as a result of this relocation to a smaller office (including any new furniture purchased), was in approximately £750,000 over the next five years.
	In addition, the Commission spent some £14,000 replacing furniture at our Gateshead office damaged by flooding from the floor above. The costs were met in full by the insurer of the tenants on the floor above.
	Since our abolition was announced on 13 August 2010, we have made only one purchase (totalling £296.10) from Kinnarps (UK) Ltd.
	Copies of each invoice will be placed in the Library.

Departmental Overseas Visits

David Nuttall: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Cannock Chase of 1 Feburary 2011,  Official Report, column 743W, on departmental overseas visits, what the cost to the public purse was of each overseas visit undertaken by the right hon. Member for Tooting.

Bob Neill: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave my hon. Friend the Member for Lancaster and Fleetwood (Eric Ollerenshaw), on 4 November 2010,  Official Report, column 941W.

Departmental Procurement

Aidan Burley: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Bromley and Chislehurst of 3 November 2008,  Official Report, column 119W, on departmental procurement, on what goods and with which suppliers the expenditure of £52,078.16 via Barclaycard was incurred; and how much of this was paid to each such supplier.

Bob Neill: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister became the Department for Communities and Local Government in 2006 and the Deputy Prime Minister's Office existed as a separate Department until 2007 when it closed and its records were archived. These records would have included records of transactions undertaken using their Government Procurement Card (Barclaycard). The individuals who carried out this storing process have now all moved on. Consequently we have not been able to retrieve the documentation and any cost involved in trying to resolve this would be disproportionate.

Departmental Research

Nick Raynsford: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what research his Department has commissioned since 12 May 2010 on  (a) attitudes and  (b) morale among (i) its staff, (ii) the staff of its agencies and (iii) the staff of non-departmental public bodies for which he is responsible; and if he will make the findings of such research public.

Bob Neill: holding answer 7 February 2011
	My Department (including staff working for the Residential Property Tribunal Service), Ordnance Survey, the Planning Inspectorate and the Fire Service College took part in autumn 2010 in the 2010 Civil Service People Survey. The Highlights reports from the survey have been placed on each organisation's website and all the results have been placed by the Cabinet Office on:
	www.data.gov.uk
	My Department also carried out a Values Survey which ran for two weeks from Monday 28 June. This asked staff to assess how their work area performed against DCLG's four headline values and 18 related behaviours and showed that:
	Staff satisfaction with performance on three of the four headline values increased in comparison with the 2009 survey
	Staff satisfaction with performance on 17 of the 18 behaviours increased in comparison with the 2009 survey.
	I am placing a copy of the People Survey Highlights reports and a summary of the Values Survey in the Library of the House.

Domestic Rates

Matthew Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment his Department has made of  (a) the requirement for a property revaluation in order to implement a house price tax on dwellings valued at £2 million or higher and  (b) the frequency of such revaluations for the purposes of such a tax.

Bob Neill: There has been no such assessment. The Government have no plans to introduce a house price tax on dwellings of whatever value. I note a house price tax (a discrete capital values system of domestic rates) was introduced by the last Administration in Northern Ireland under direct rule, which necessitated a revaluation of dwellings.

Fire Services: Pensions

Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  how many members of the Firefighters Pension Scheme there are;
	(2)  what proportion of  (a) active and  (b) deferred members of the Firefighters Pension Scheme are aged between (i) 20 and 30, (ii) 31 and 40, (iii) 41 and 50, (iv) 51 and 55 and (v) 56 and 65 years;
	(3)  what proportion of members of the Firefighters Pension Scheme are  (a) (i) part time and (ii) full time,  (b) (A) male and (B) female and (c) (i) active members and (ii) deferred members/pensioners;
	(4)  what proportion of active members of the Firefighters Pension Scheme earn  (a) between £10,000 and £15,000,  (b) between £15,000 and £20,000,  (c) between £20,000 and £25,000,  (d) between £25,000 and £30,000 and  (e) £30,000 and more;
	(5)  what the administration costs of the Firefighters Pension Scheme are for 2010-11; and what the costs were in each of the last 12 years.

Bob Neill: This information is not collected centrally by the Department. However, scheme membership data, as at 31 March 2007, can be found in the Firefighters' Pension Scheme Valuation 2007 prepared by the Government Actuary's Department:
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/fire/pdf/ActuarialValutaionGADReport.pdf

Fire Services: Pensions

Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assumptions he has made in respect of the dropout rate from the Firefighters Pension Scheme attributable to  (a) potential increases in contributions and  (b) its indexation against the consumer prices index; what assessment he has made of the effect of the dropout rate on the future viability of this fund; and if he will make a statement.

Bob Neill: Consideration of the effects of this policy on the opt-out rate will be made as part of the process of determining the distribution of increases in contributions across members of the Firefighters' Pension Schemes. We are engaging with a range of scheme interests on how best to achieve these savings and wish to implement change in a way which minimises increases in opt-out rates. The Government have already committed to implementing contribution increases in a progressive way so that higher earners pay higher rates than lower earners. No assessment has been made of the number of additional members that might opt out as a result of the change in indexation.

Fire Services: Pensions

Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the pension entitlement will be of a member of the Firefighters Pension Scheme who retires after 30 years' full-time service on a salary of  (a) £10,000,  (b) £15,000,  (c) £20,000,  (d) £25,000,  (e) £30,000,  (f) £40,000 and  (e) £50,000 if the pension is uprated in line with (i) the retail prices index and (ii) the consumer prices index.

Bob Neill: Existing members of the Firefighters' Pension Scheme, with an accrual rate of 1/60th of final salary for the first 20 years of membership and 2/60th accrual for the last 10 years, would be entitled to  (a) £6,667,  (b) 10,000,  (c) £13,333,  (d) £16,667,  (e) £20,000,  (f) £26,667 and  (g) £33,333 if the salaries quoted were the final pensionable salary amounts. A member of the New Firefighters' Pension Scheme, with an accrual rate of 1/60th of final salary for each year of members, would be entitled to  (a) £5,000,  (b) £7,500,  (c) £10,000,  (d) £12,500,  (e) £15,000,  (f) £20,000,  (g) £25,000 if the salaries quoted were the final pensionable salary amounts.
	Because future measures of inflation are not known, it is not possible to estimate uprated amounts.

Fire Services: Pensions

Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the likely savings to the Firefighters Pension Scheme of the proposed indexation according to the consumer prices index  (a) in 2010-11 and  (b) in the next (i) 10, (ii) 20, (iii) 25 and (iv) 30 years.

Bob Neill: The Department has not made any separate assessment of the likely savings of the changes to indexation.

Local Government: Pensions

Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  what proportion of  (a) active and  (b) deferred members of the Local Government Pension Scheme are aged between (i) 20 and 30, (ii) 31 and 40, (iii) 41 and 50, (iv) 51 and 55 and (v) 56 and 65 years;
	(2)  what proportion of members of the Local Government Pension Scheme are  (a) (i) part time and (ii) full time,  (b) (A) male and (B) female and  (c) (i) active members and (ii) deferred members/pensioners;
	(3)  how many members of the Local Government Pension Scheme there are.

Bob Neill: At 31 March 2010, the latest date for which data are available, there were 4,061,000 members of the Local Government Pension scheme in England. Of these, 1,684,000 (41%) were active members, 1,245,000 (31%) were members entitled to deferred benefits and 1,131,000 (28%) were pensioners.
	Data are not available broken down by age, gender or employment status.
	These data are available in the statistical release 'Local Government Pension Scheme Funds England 2009-10' that was published on 13 October 2010 and is available on the Department for Communities and Local Government website at:
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/localgovernment/localregional/localgovernmentfinance/statistics/pensionscheme/
	The data are as reported to DCLG by the 81 Local Government Pension Scheme administering authorities in England on the annual SF3 form.

Local Government: Pensions

Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assumptions he has made in respect of the dropout rate from the Local Government Pension Scheme attributable to  (a) potential increases in contributions and  (b) its indexation against the consumer prices index; what assessment he has made of the effect of the dropout rate on the future viability of this fund; and if he will make a statement.

Bob Neill: Consideration of the effects of this policy on the opt-out rate will be made as part of the process of determining the distribution of increases in contributions across members of the Local Government Pension Scheme in England and Wales. We are engaging with a range of scheme interests on how best to achieve these savings and wish to implement change in a way which minimises increases in opt-out rates. The Government have already committed to implementing contribution increases in a progressive way so that higher earners pay higher rates than lower earners. No assessment has been made of the number of additional members that might opt out as a result of the change in indexation.

Local Government: Pensions

Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the pension entitlement will be of a member of the Local Government Pension Scheme who retires after 30 years' full-time service on a salary of  (a) £10,000,  (b) £15,000,  (c) £20,000,  (d) £25,000,  (e) £30,000,  (f) £40,000 and  (e) £50,000 if the pension is uprated in line with (i) the retail prices index and (ii) the consumer prices index.

Bob Neill: A member of the Local Government Pension Scheme with an accrual rate of 1/60th of final salary for each year of membership would be entitled to  (a) £5,000,  (b) £7,500,  (c) £10,000,  (d) £12,500,  (e) £15,000,  (f) £20,000 and  (g) £25,000 if the salaries quoted were the final pensionable salary amounts.
	Because future measures of inflation are not known, it is not possible to estimate future uprated amounts.

Local Government: Pensions

Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what proportion of active members of the Local Government Pension Scheme earn  (a) between £10,000 and £15,000,  (b) between £15,000 and £20,000,  (c) between £20,000 and £25,000,  (d) between £25,000 and £30,000 and  (e) £30,000 and more.

Bob Neill: This information is not collected centrally by the Department. Data about fund members can only be obtained from their local authority pension provider.

Local Government: Pensions

Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the likely savings to the Local Government Pension Scheme of the proposed indexation according to the consumer prices index  (a) in 2010-11 and  (b) in the next (i) 10, (ii) 20, (iii) 25 and (iv) 30 years.

Bob Neill: The Department has not made any separate assessment of the likely savings of the changes to indexation. The impact of any savings on the scheme's future pension liabilities will be taken into account at each pension funds triennial valuation exercise.

Local Government: Pensions

Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the administration costs of the Local Government Pension Scheme are for 2010-11; and what the costs were in each of the last 12 years.

Bob Neill: Details of the pension administration costs of the Local Government Pension Scheme in England for the period 1998-99 to 2009-10, the latest date for which data are available, are given, in £ million, in the following table.
	
		
			   £ million 
			 1998-99 61 
			 1999-2000 63 
			 2000-01 70 
			 2001-02 74 
			 2002-03 .77 
			 2003-04 80 
			 2004-05 88 
			 2005-06 91 
			 2006-07 95 
			 2007-08 105 
			 2008-09 114 
			 2009-10 115 
		
	
	The last five year's data are available in the statistical release "Local Government Pension Scheme Funds England 2009-10" that was published on 13 October 2010 and is available on the Department for Communities and Local Government website at
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/localgovernment/local regional/localgovernmentfinance/statistics/pensionscheme/
	The data are as reported to DCLG by the 81 Local Government Pension Scheme administering authorities in England on the annual SF3 form.

Local Government: Powers

Ann Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment he has made of the compatibility of the general powers of competence proposed in the Localism Bill with the powers of a primary authority to require enforcement authorities not to proceed with an enforcement action.

Greg Clark: The general power of competence gives local authorities the power to do anything an individual may do. It does not provide local authorities with any new powers of regulation or enforcement. There can, therefore, be no incompatibility with the provisions of the Regulatory Enforcement and Sanctions Act 2008, which is concerned with the proper exercise of such powers. Local authorities will still be required to abide by statutory limitations or restrictions.

Local Government: Powers

Ann Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether a local authority exercising its powers of general competence could be sanctioned for ignoring a primary authority arrangement.

Greg Clark: The general power of competence will not allow a local authority to ignore a primary authority arrangement under the Regulatory Enforcement and Sanctions Act 2008. Such arrangements apply to the exercise of certain enforcement powers, and as the general power does not give authorities additional enforcement powers, it cannot be used to circumvent such arrangements. In any case, the exercise of the general power is subject to existing statutory limitations and restrictions such as those set out in that Act.

Local Government: Powers

Ann Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will ensure that the proposed general powers of competence to be provided to local authorities under the provisions of the Localism Bill are compatible with the requirement in section 66 and 5 of the Regulation Enforcement and Sanctions Act 2008 for the regulatory authority to satisfy himself prior to granting civil sanctions powers that then will be exercised in the manner required in section 5.

Greg Clark: Section 5 of the Regulation, Enforcement and Sanctions Act 2008 relates to the exercise of regulatory functions. The general power does not provide local authorities with new regulatory powers. Local authorities will still be required to abide by statutory limitations or restrictions.

Planning Permission

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether all buildings designated as agricultural are considered under the same category within the planning process.

Bob Neill: The use of land, including the buildings located thereon, for the purposes of agriculture is not development by virtue of section 55(2)(e) of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990. This means that the use of land or buildings for agricultural purposes is not subject to planning control. The planning definition of agriculture is at section 336(1) of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990.
	The construction of agricultural buildings may, however, be subject to planning control depending on the nature of the development proposed.
	The construction or use of buildings on agricultural land which would not be for agricultural purposes would generally need planning permission. For example, the establishment on agricultural land of a seed research laboratory is likely to require planning permission.
	It is for the local planning authority, in the first instance, to determine whether a building or land is being used for agricultural purposes or otherwise, and to determine whether specific planning permission is required for any development.

Planning Permission

Dan Byles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether the Planning Inspectorate has considered multiple planning applications in the name of Patrick Hanrahan; and what the Inspectorate's policy is on monitoring the submission of multiple applications in different geographical areas under the same name.

Bob Neill: The Planning Inspectorate considered one enforcement appeal and one planning appeal made in the name of Mr Patrick Hanrahan both of which were dismissed on 21 June 2010. Both appeals were in the Local Planning Authority geographical area of Cheshire West and Chester council.
	The Inspectorate does not monitor the submission of multiple appeals in the same name in different geographical areas. As a tribunal service making decisions on individual appeals it would have no purpose in maintaining such information as individual appeals must be determined on their merits. However, as data on all appeals are held on a database, were that information to be sought by any party, a list of all appeals made by an individual or company would be compiled and provided on request.

Public Houses

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps his Department is taking to support the development of community pubs.

Bob Neill: Community pubs are often important local assets. Along with other institutions such as village shops and community centres, pubs can play an important role in strengthening community relationships and encouraging wider social action. We are, therefore, developing a number of measures to help support community pubs.
	As part of our determination to shift power to local neighbourhoods, we aim to ensure through the Localism Bill that community organisations have a fair chance to bid to take over and run assets and facilities that are important to them, including local pubs.
	The Department will undertake a public consultation into the issue of restrictive covenants on pubs, with a focus on the impact they have on local communities. This will be completed in the summer of 2011.
	We are committed to helping firms with business rates: making small business rate relief automatic; introducing a more generous small business rate relief scheme for a year from October 2010; and giving councils powers to levy discretionary business rate discounts-which could, tor example, be used to support local pubs.
	The Government are also to ban the sale of alcohol below cost price, helping protect pubs from unfair "loss leading" by some shops. Licensing rules will be reformed to make it easier to play live music in local pubs, and the Government have already scrapped the planned 10% rise in cider duties (the so-called cider tax).
	We are currently considering the use of a number of social finance initiatives, such as community shares, which will make it easier for community organisations to gain the finance they need to take their plans forward.

SCOTLAND

Departmental Carbon Emissions

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much his Department spent on carbon offsetting in each of the last three years; and to which companies payments for carbon offsetting were made in each such year.

David Mundell: All central Government ministerial and official air travel has been offset from 1 April 2006 through the Government Carbon Offsetting Facility. In each of the last three years the Scotland Office has been part of the Ministry of Justice for these purposes and data about carbon emissions have been submitted to the Ministry of Justice for inclusion in its returns.

Scottish Trades Union Congress

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when he last met representatives of the Scottish Trade Union Congress.

David Mundell: The Secretary of State has met representatives from the Scottish Trades Union Congress on several occasions in the past few months, most recently in November, to discuss a range of issues and plans to meet them again in the near future.

VAT: Charities

Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what assessment he has made of the change in the level of value added tax receipts from charitable organisations in Scotland as a result of the increase in the standard rate.

Michael Moore: The coalition Government inherited an exceptional fiscal challenge. The most urgent priority is to tackle the record budget deficit to restore confidence in our economy and support the recovery. Voluntary organisations do a great deal for our country and make a large contribution to our communities. This is why charities in the UK receive £3 billion of tax relief a year, including over £1 billion in Gift Aid and around £200,000 in VAT reliefs.

ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Fuel Poverty

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what central Government funding was allocated to the alleviation of fuel poverty in each region of the UK in each year for which figures are available; and how much such funding he plans to allocate in each of the next five years.

Gregory Barker: The following tables show the actual spend in 2008-09 and 2009-10 and the budget for 2010-11 to 2012-13 for the Warm Front scheme.(1)
	(1) The Warm Front scheme is for England only. Similar schemes are funded by the devolved administrations in Scotland (Energy Assistance Package), Wales (The Home Energy Efficiency Scheme) and Northern Ireland (Warm Homes).
	
		
			   Actual spend (£ million) 
			 2008-09 397 
			 2009-10 369 
		
	
	
		
			   Budget (£ million) 
			 2010-11 348 
			 2011-12 110 
			 2012-13 100 
		
	
	It was announced in the spending review that from 2013 support for the most vulnerable will be delivered through the Green Deal for energy efficiency and a new obligation on energy companies.
	The spending review 2010 announced that support worth £250 million in 2011-12 rising to £310 million in 2014-15 will be provided by energy suppliers to vulnerable consumers to help with their energy costs. In total suppliers will be required to provide around £1.1 billion in support. The following table shows the funding 2011-12 to 2014-15 for the Warm Home Discount scheme.
	
		
			   Value of the Warm Home Discount scheme (£ million) 
			 2011-12 250 
			 2012-13 275 
			 2013-14 300 
			 2014-15 310

Fuel Poverty

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change when he expects to complete and publish his Department's fuel poverty review.

Gregory Barker: We hope to initiate the independent review of the fuel poverty target and definition shortly, with a view to completion by the end of the year.

Green Deal

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps he plans to take to include  (a) energy savings and  (b) water efficiency measures in the Green Deal; and if he will make a statement.

Gregory Barker: Green Deal finance will support measures that can be expected to pay for themselves in energy savings over their lifetime and within the period of the finance arrangement.
	We will shortly launch a Call for Evidence from industry and other stakeholders on the costs and benefits of a wide range of measures and on how best to formulate an eligibility criteria.
	Measures that deliver hot water efficiency may be eligible if they deliver sufficient energy savings to pay for themselves and meet the wider criteria.

Solar Power

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 7 February 2011,  Official Report, column 3WS, on feed-in tariffs, what methodology his Department used in order to define a solar installation of over 50 kW as large scale; and if he will make a statement.

Charles Hendry: 50 kW is simply the threshold used in the existing statutory definition of microgeneration which is why it provides the starting point for defining the scope of the fast-track review of large scale solar PV.

Solar Power

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent representations he has received on the takeup of solar installations in the built environment; and if he will make a statement.

Gregory Barker: We frequently receive representations on the uptake of solar photovoltaics (PV) in the built environment. We also receive regular information from Ofgem on uptake of solar PV under the feed-in tariffs (FITs) scheme. The latest information shows that just over 21,000 solar PV are currently registered for FITs, the vast majority of which are attached to buildings.

Solar Power

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the evidential basis is for his proposal to undertake a fast-track review of all photovoltaic installations greater than 50kw; and if he will make a statement.

Angela Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what his estimate is of the number of large-scale solar photovoltaic schemes which will come into operation in the next five years.

Gregory Barker: As the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change confirmed in a written ministerial statement to the House on 7 February 2011,  Official Report, Columns 2-3WS, we are aware that several large solar photovoltaic (PV) installations have already received planning permission. Industry projections indicate there could be many more in the planning system.
	Large-scale solar PV was not fully anticipated in the original feed-in tariffs (FITs) scheme and there is a risk that, if unchecked, such schemes could push FITs off trajectory and may make the spending review savings difficult. That is why we have started a fast-track review of such schemes.

Solar Power

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the potential effect on certainty and transparency in the market for photovoltaic installations of his proposal for fast-track review of such installations greater than 50kw; and if he will make a statement.

Gregory Barker: I recognise that the industry needs a long-term plan for investment in which it can have full confidence. By bringing forward the first review of feed-in tariffs (FITs) and fast-tracking consideration of large-scale solar photovoltaic (PV), I intend to bring certainty for industry. We are getting on with work on the fast-track review as quickly as possible and will publish detailed proposals next month.

Solar Power

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the potential effect on employment arising from photovoltaic installations of his proposal to fast-track review such installations greater than 50kw; and if he will make a statement.

Gregory Barker: The feed-in tariffs (FITs) scheme has been a clear success at stimulating green growth, driving innovation, creating jobs and cutting carbon since its introduction last year. These successes have been delivered by a scheme in which currently all but three of the solar photovoltaic (PV) installations accredited are below 50kW.
	The Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change only announced the start of the FITs review, including fast-track consideration of large scale solar PV, on 7 February. Detailed proposals on the fast-track review are being worked up and will be published for consultation next month.

Solar Power

Angela Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many large-scale solar photovoltaic schemes have qualified for the Feed-In Tariff scheme since its inception.

Gregory Barker: Data provided by Ofgem shows that a total of three large-scale (over 50 kW) solar photovoltaic (PV) schemes have been accredited for Feed-In Tariffs since the scheme started in April 2010. All of these schemes have a total installed capacity of between 50 kW and 100 kW.

Solar Power: Israel

Gordon Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether he has had discussions with the Government of Israel on co-operation in the solar power industry.

Gregory Barker: While DECC does engage with Israel through multilateral fora that seek to promote renewable energy, such as the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), the Department has not had direct discussions with Israel on solar power.

Solar Power: Planning Permission

Martin Caton: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many solar panel farms generating between one and five megawatts of electricity  (a) have received planning permission and  (b) are under active consideration.

Gregory Barker: The Department does not routinely collect these data. However, data obtained from RESTATS:
	https://restats.decc.gov.uk/cms/welcome-to-the-restats-web-site
	and Cornwall county council shows six solar park projects have received planning permission since the establishment of the FITs scheme on 15 July 2010. Data dated 4 February from Cornwall county council also shows 14 awaiting planning decision.

Warm Home Discount Scheme

George Hollingbery: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will estimate the annual cost of including in the warm home discount individuals with a terminal illness who receive disability living allowance or attendance allowance through the special rules process, but who do not receive pension credit in  (a) Meon Valley constituency,  (b) Hampshire and  (c) nationally.

Gregory Barker: The coalition Government have recently consulted on the Warm Home Discount scheme which would require energy suppliers to provide financial assistance to more of their most vulnerable consumers.
	A response on the consultation, including eligibility for support, level of benefit and the cost of targeting this support, will be published in due course.

TREASURY

Air Passenger Duty

Henry Smith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what proportion of  (a) liable passengers were charged under and  (b) total revenue was received from each band of air passenger duty in the last year for which figures are available; and what estimate he has made of the equivalent figures for 2010-11;
	(2)  how much revenue he expects to raise each year from the recent increase in air passenger duty in respect of band  (a) A,  (b) B,  (c) C and  (d) D;
	(3)  how much was received in air passenger duty from flights to the Caribbean in each of the last five years;
	(4)  what estimate he has made of the likely cost to the Exchequer of limiting the standard rate of air passenger duty to business or first class tickets;
	(5)  whether he assessed for benchmarking purposes the use of a per plane system of aviation taxation in other countries as part of his aviation taxation review;
	(6)  what the  (a) collection and  (b) administrative costs associated with air passenger duty were in the latest period for which figures are available; and what assessment he has made of the efficiency of HM Revenue and Customs in collecting (a) air passenger duty and (b) other taxes.

Justine Greening: For each destination band under air passenger duty (APD), the numbers of chargeable passengers and the revenue declared are published on a monthly basis on HMRC's UK Trade Info website:
	https://www.uktradeinfo.com/index.cfm?task=bulletins
	Data are available up to November 2010.
	Forecasting of tax receipts is undertaken by the Office for Budget Responsibility; its latest forecast was in November 2010 and is published at:
	http://budgetresponsibility.independent.gov.uk/econ-fiscal-outlook.html
	HMRC does not collect information on the contribution to APD revenues made from flights to specific countries including those in the Caribbean.
	No estimate is available for limiting the standard rate of APD to business and first class passengers, as data submitted by airlines for the purposes of APD are not broken down on this basis.
	The Government are taking a range of factors into account in exploring changes to the aviation tax system; major changes will be subject to consultation.
	The cost of collecting APD, including administrative costs incurred by HMRC, is 0.04 of a penny per pound collected for 2008-09. APD is the cheapest of all HMRC's taxes to collect. The latest costs of collecting all HMRC taxes are contained in Table 1 of HMRC's Departmental Autumn Performance Report 2009, which is available on the HMRC website:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/about/autumn-report-2009.pdf

Child Benefit: Lone Parents

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many single parent families resident in  (a) Coventry,  (b) the West Midlands and  (c) England he expects to have their annual income reduced as a result of implementation of the proposed changes to child benefit announced in the June 2010 Budget.

David Gauke: It is estimated that around 50,000 single-parent families resident in England will be affected by the proposed changes to child benefit announced in the June 2010 Budget.
	Estimates of the number of single-parents affected by the child benefit changes are not robust at regional level.
	Information on household income for child benefit claimants is not available at parliamentary constituency or local authority level.

Civil Servants

Kate Green: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which senior civil service staff have left his Department since May 2010; and what contractual or non-contractual payments were made by his Department in each case.

Justine Greening: The following senior civil service staff have left HM Treasury since May 2010.
	John Sweetman
	Andrew Kilpatrick
	Cressy Macdonald
	Lucy Makinson
	Jacky Rees
	Charles Lloyd
	Joanna Crellin
	Darren Philp
	Clive Maxwell
	Ray Shostak
	Simon Ridley
	David Lunn
	Katherine Green
	Louise Tulett
	Robert Woods
	Full details of the remuneration paid to members of the Treasury Board, including any payments associated with their departure, are published annually in the Treasury Group Resource Accounts. Protected personal data relating to individual payments made to other staff are not available.

Climate Change Levy: Northern Ireland

Margaret Ritchie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether his Department conducted an impact assessment on the replacement of the climate change levy exemption for Northern Ireland.

Justine Greening: A tax information and impact note was published alongside the draft legislation on the replacement of the climate change levy exemption for Northern Ireland on 31 January and is available on the HMT website.
	Copies of the draft legislation and tax information and impact note have been deposited in the Libraries of both Houses and are available on the Treasury website at:
	http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/finance_bill_2011.htm

Departmental Manpower

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 31 January 2011,  Official Report, column 589W, on , what the administrative arrangements were for the work now carried out by the Devolved Countries Unit prior to that unit's formation in 2008.

Danny Alexander: Prior to 2008 the Devolved Countries Unit was a branch within a larger team. Currently the Devolved Countries Unit has a deputy director solely responsible for devolution issues in HM Treasury. Prior to 2008 the deputy director responsible for the devolution unit was also responsible for other policy areas, including local government.

Financial Services: Education

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the support and advice available for young people and vulnerable groups with financial planning and financial literacy.

Mark Hoban: The Consumer Financial Education Body, soon to be renamed the Money Advice Service, has statutory objectives to improve understanding of financial matters among the general public and to enhance the ability of members of the public to manage their financial affairs, including among young people and vulnerable groups. CFEB is an independent body which is responsible for measuring the effectiveness of its work.

Financial Services: Education

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what role his Department plays in promoting financial literacy.

Mark Hoban: The Treasury is responsible for developing policy on financial capability and financial literacy. Delivery of financial capability and literacy activities is undertaken by the Consumer Financial Education Body (CFEB), soon to be known as the Money Advice Service, and a number of private and third sector bodies. The Government have asked CFEB to deliver a new national financial advice service and annual financial healthcheck, both of which will be available from the spring and which will contribute to increasing levels of financial literacy.

Gift Aid

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the amount of tax foregone through the Gift Aid scheme in  (a) 2007-08,  (b) 2008-09 and (c) 2009-10.

Justine Greening: The Gift Aid scheme results in two types of tax repayments: repayments to charities of tax paid by donors and repayments to donors who are higher rate taxpayers. Data on repayments to charities are published at
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/charities/table10-1.pdf
	and data on higher rate repayments are published at
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/charities/table10-2.pdf

Gift Aid Transitional Relief Scheme: Charities

Graeme Morrice: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has for the future of the Gift Aid transitional relief scheme for charities.

Justine Greening: The relief was introduced as a temporary measure, to give charities time to prepare their financial plans, in response to a lower rate of relief from Gift Aid. By April, charities will have had four years to prepare for the change. Gift Aid transitional relief will not be extended beyond April 2011. At the spending review the Chancellor announced help to the voluntary sector through the £100 million Transition Fund to support the charities that are most in need.

Green Investment Bank

William Bain: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his policy is on the recording of the liabilities and assets of the proposed Green Investment Bank in the Government's public borrowing statistics.

Danny Alexander: The Government will follow Eurostat's rules, which are set out in the European System of Accounts 1995 (ESA 95) and the Manual on Government Deficit and Debt, to account for the assets and the liabilities of the Green Investment Bank.

Low Pay

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many  (a) women and  (b) men had earnings that were below the lower earnings limit in (i) 2000, (ii) 1990 and (iii) 1980.

David Gauke: Estimates of the total number of employees earning below the lower earnings limit for national insurance contributions are not available through HMRC administrative data sources.

Manufacturing Industries: West Midlands

Chris White: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what fiscal measures he is taking to promote manufacturing in the West Midlands; and if he will make a statement.

Justine Greening: The June Budget announced reductions in the main rate of corporation tax from 28 to 24% over four years, and of the small profits rate from 21 to 20%. While in part funded by reductions in capital allowances, this package will reduce the annual tax burden on companies by over £2 billion. The manufacturing sector is expected to gain over £250 million annually when the package is fully implemented.
	The Government recognise the importance of predictability and stability for all businesses and has recently set out a corporate tax road map to provide business with certainty over its plans for corporate tax reform.
	The Government are also undertaking a growth review to examine what each part of government can do to support growth and investment. Advanced manufacturing is one of the sectors being examined as part of this first phase of this review, which will report at Budget 2011.

Mortgages

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what discussions his Department had with the Financial Services Authority prior to the completion of its consultation on its mortgage market review in respect of the effects of its proposals on  (a) compliance with Basel 3,  (b) availability of mortgage products,  (c) capital adequacy and  (d) deposit requirements for first time home buyers; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Hoban: Treasury Ministers and officials have discussions with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with the previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such discussions.

Public Expenditure

Matthew Hancock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will place in the Library the figures underlying Chart 1.3 on page 18 of the Spending Review 2010.

Danny Alexander: The following table presents the figures underlying chart 1.3 on page 18 of 'Spending Review 2010'.
	
		
			   2014-15  Policy inherited by the Government 
			 Total cuts (£ billion) 81 56 
			
			 2010-11 efficiency savings 7 - 
			 DEL savings in spending review period (excluding the impact of 2010-11 efficiency savings) 46 48 
			 Budget AME savings 11 - 
			 Spending review changes in AME 7 - 
			 Debt interest savings 10 7 
		
	
	Spending reductions are shown against baseline of growing DEL in line with inflation, in line with Table 4.8 in the OBR pre-Budget forecast, and the AME forecast in the Budget.
	At the spending review, the Government set an AME margin, which reaches £4 billion by 2014-15. The previous Government always had an AME margin and therefore, to provide a consistent comparison for implied DEL savings, the table .is based on the assumption that the previous Government would also have set an AME margin of £4 billion by 2014-15. The cuts implied in 'policy inherited by the Government' are therefore made up of £52 billion (including £44 billion DEL savings) as set out in table 1.1 of the June Budget, plus £4 billion of further DEL savings that we assumed the previous Government would have made to fund the AME margin. This gives a gross figure for policy inherited by the Government of £56 billion. Total cuts by 2014-15, which include both the previous Government's cuts as well as this Government's cuts, as shown in the table 1.3, are £81 billion, which is net of the AME margin.

Public Expenditure

Matthew Hancock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to table 1.1 of the June 2010 Budget, what his most recent figures are for consolidation plans over the forecast period to 2014-15.

Danny Alexander: The Government's latest total consolidation plans were set out in Table 1.1 of the June Budget 2010.
	The table shows that the Government are undertaking £8.9 billion of consolidation in 2010-11, £41 billion in 2011-12, £66 billion in 2012-13, £90 billion in 2013-14 and £113 billion in 2014-15
	The OBR will publish an updated forecast for the public finances at the 2011 Budget in March which will include the impact of consolidation.

Public Expenditure

Matthew Hancock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  pursuant to page 104 of the June 2010 Budget, footnote 1, what recent advice he has received from the Office for Budget Responsibility on  (a) his Department's figures for cyclically-adjusted borrowing between 2006-07 and 2009-10 and  (b) the Office's view of the cyclical position of the economy; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  whether the  (a) Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) and  (b) his Department has revised historic figures for cyclically-adjusted borrowing based on the OBR's assessment of the output gap.

Danny Alexander: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), and I have asked the OBR to reply.
	 Letter from Robert Chote, dated February 2011:
	As Chair of the Budget Responsibility Committee of the Office for Budget Responsibility, I have been asked to reply to your recent questions.
	In its forecasts to date, the OBR has estimated the current size of the output gap by drawing on a range of contemporaneous indicators of spare capacity, including information from surveys and ONS data. Estimating the past history of the output gap using this methodology is not straightforward, as different capacity indicators have been available for different periods of time. We hope to publish a paper exploring available methods of doing so later this year.
	As regards our most recent assessment of the cyclical position of the economy, in our November Economic and fiscal outlook we estimated that the economy was running about 31/4 per cent below full capacity in the second quarter of 2010.

Public Expenditure

Matthew Hancock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the June 2010 Budget, page 104, footnote 1, what his most recent estimate is of  (a) cyclically-adjusted net borrowing and  (b) cyclically-adjusted surplus on the budget for each year from 1997-98 to 2010-11.

Danny Alexander: In their 'Economic and Fiscal forecast', published on 29 November, the independent Office for Budget Responsibility forecast cyclically-adjusted net borrowing and the cyclically-adjusted surplus on current budget for 2010-11. This is available at:
	http://budgetresponsibility.independent.gov.uk/d/econ_fiscal_outlook_291110.pdf
	Outturn figures for these cyclically-adjusted aggregates in previous years can be found in the public finances databank on the Treasury website:
	http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/psf_statistics.htm
	The following table shows cyclically adjusted public sector net borrowing and cyclically adjusted surplus on current budget since 1997-98.
	
		
			  % GDP 
			   Cyclically adjusted public sector net borrowing  Cyclically adjusted current budget 
			 1997-98 0.6 -0.1 
			 1998-99 -0.2 0.9 
			 1999-2000 -1.1 1.7 
			 2000-01 -1.1 1.6 
			 2001-02 0.2 0.9 
			 2002-03 1.9 -0.6 
			 2003-04 2.6 -1.2 
			 2004-05 3.1 -1.4 
			 2005-06 2.8 -0.9 
			 2006-07 2.3 -0.4 
			 2007-08 2.6 -0.6 
			 2008-09 6.3 -3.1 
			 2009-10(1) 8.8 -5.3 
			 2010-11 7.6 -4.7 
			 201 1-12 5.3 -3.3 
			 2012-13 3.5 -1.8 
			 2013-14 1.9 -0.5 
			 2014-15 0.8 0.5 
			 2015-16 0.3 0.9 
			 (1) Source:  OBR's November Economic and Fiscal Outlook. 
		
	
	The OBR has not published estimates of the output gap or cyclically adjusted balances prior to 2009. The estimates prior to 2009-10 are based on Treasury estimates of trend output and the output gap from the March Budget.
	The OBR have indicated that they expect to publish analysis of the output gap pre 2009 this year which will explore different methodologies for evaluating it.

Public Expenditure

Matthew Hancock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much of his fiscal consolidation plan will be attributed to the previous administration in each year from 2010-11 to 2014-15; and how much is accounted for by  (a) spending and  (b) tax measures.

Danny Alexander: As set out in table 1.1 of the June Budget, the total consolidation attributed to the previous Government amounts to £0.8 billion in 2010-11, £26 billion in 2011-12, £42 billion in 2012-13, £57 billion in 2013-14 and £73 billion in 2014-15.
	Of this, the inherited spending consolidation amounted to £0 billion in 2010-11, £14 billion in 2011-12, £25 billion in 2012-13, £39 billion in 2013-14, £52 billion in 2014-15.
	The inherited tax measures amounted to £0.8 billion in 2010-11, £11 billion in 2011-12, £17 billion in 2012-13, £18 billion in 2013-14 and £21 billion in 2014-15.

Smuggling: Alcoholic Drinks and Tobacco

Lee Scott: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the monetary value was of alcohol and tobacco products seized by HM Customs and Excise in each of the last three years for which figures are available.

Justine Greening: The combined value of goods and the associated taxes from alcohol and tobacco seized in the UK by HM Revenue and Customs and UK Border Agency in each of the last three years is shown as follows.
	
		
			  £ million 
			   Alcohol  Tobacco 
			 2007-08 23.81 287.81 
			 2008-09 20.18 280.32 
			 2009-10 26.70 262.37

Tax Allowances: Social Services

Penny Mordaunt: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what consideration he has given to the introduction of tax concessions for savings schemes solely for the funding of social care; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Hoban: The Government established a commission on the funding of care and support in July 2010, chaired by Andrew Dilnot. The commission is due to report to the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Secretary of State for Health in July 2011. We will consider the commission's recommendations once we receive their report.

Taxation: Domicile

Harriett Baldwin: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  how many non-domiciled UK taxpayers filed tax returns with HM Revenue and Customs in each of the last five tax years;
	(2)  how many non-domiciled taxpayers have paid the flat annual charge to the Exchequer since its introduction;
	(3)  how much tax non-domiciled taxpayers paid to the Exchequer in each of the last five tax years.

David Gauke: The number of individuals who filed a self-assessment (SA) tax return and indicated that they were non-domiciled was as follows:
	
		
			   Number 
			 2004-05 110,000 
			 2005-06 111,000 
			 2006-07 117,000 
			 2007-08 140,000 
			 2008-09 123,000 
		
	
	2008-09 is the most recent tax year for which data are available.
	The figures above include both individuals who were UK resident and individuals who were not UK resident.
	Individuals who complete a SA return are only required to indicate that they are non-domiciled if this affects their tax liability. Therefore the actual number of non-domiciled individuals who complete a return will be greater than the number who indicate their non-domicile status on their SA return.
	The annual £30,000 remittance basis charge was introduced with effect from the 2008-09 tax year. The number of non-domiciled individuals who paid the charge in 2008-09 was 5,400. This is a provisional figure rounded to the nearest hundred and may be updated once all returns for the tax year have been received and analysed.
	Figures are not available for the total amount of UK tax paid by non domiciled individuals. However, it is possible to calculate the total amount of UK income tax and capital gains tax (CGT) paid by individuals who completed an SA return and indicated that they were non-domiciled. These amounts for the past five tax years were as follows:
	
		
			   £ billion 
			 2004-05 3.3 
			 2005-06 4.0 
			 2006-07 5.0 
			 2007-08 6.9 
			 2008-09 5.9 
		
	
	Several taxes are not accounted for via the SA system and some non-domiciled individuals are not required to complete an SA return at all.

VAT: Sandwiches

Christopher Chope: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what his policy is in relation to the liability of fast food outlets to pay value added tax on toasted sandwiches;
	(2)  for what reasons HM Revenue and Customs rescinded its decision that toasted sandwiches should be treated in the same way as other sandwiches and not subject to value added tax in December 2005.

David Gauke: VAT is payable on a supply of hot food that has been heated for the purposes of enabling it to be consumed at a temperature above the ambient air temperature and it is above that temperature at the time it is provided to the customer. This applies to food sold by any business.
	Food served in restaurants and cafes has always been taxable at the standard rate as a supply of catering. In 1984 this was extended to include hot take-away food (including toasted sandwiches) in order to bring it into line with that of restaurant meals.
	HMRC has a responsibility to administer VAT law correctly. In 2005, a decision that had been made to an individual taxpayer was withdrawn following a review of all the relevant facts. HMRCs policy on toasted sandwiches has remained unchanged since 1984.

EDUCATION

Building Schools for the Future Programme: Private Finance Initiative

Jesse Norman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what his most recent estimate is of the total outstanding liabilities to private finance initiative providers under the Building Schools for the Future programme.

Nick Gibb: We are currently collating information on education PFI unitary charges as part of a wider PFI data collection exercise undertaken by HM Treasury, and we understand that HM Treasury will publish that information as part of the Budget 2011.

Education Maintenance Allowance

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education pursuant to the answer of 10 January 2011,  Official Report, columns 80-1W, on the education maintenance allowance, what the evaluation evidence and other research referred to is.

Nick Gibb: When making the decision to end EMA, we considered all the evidence from the EMA Pilots which includes a number of reports conducted by a consortium led by the Centre for Research into Social Policy (CRSP) and involving the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) and the National Centre for Social Research. The main reports referred to were: Ashworth, K., Hardman, J., Hartfree, Y., Maguire, S., Middleton, S., Smith, D., Dearden, L., Emmerson, C, Frayne, C, Meghir, C. (2002), 'Education Maintenance Allowance: The First Two Years: A Quantitative Evaluation', Department for Education and Skills Research Report 352; and Chowdry, H., Dearden, L. and Emmerson, C. (2007) 'Education Maintenance Allowance: Evaluation with Administrative Data-The Impact of the EMA pilots on participation and attainment in post-compulsory education', Institute for Fiscal Studies/Learning and Skills Council.
	These reports, and other evaluation evidence, are available at:
	http://ema.ypla.gov.uk/resources/research/evaluation-reports/
	We also considered research into barriers to participation (including financial barriers), which was undertaken by the National Foundation for Educational Research, working in partnership with Triangle and QA Research: (Spielhofer et al (2010) 'Barriers to Participation in Education and Training; DFE RR009'.

Education Maintenance Allowance: Ashton-in-Makerfield

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will  (a) undertake and  (b) publish an equality impact assessment in respect of the effects on Ashfield constituency of the abolition of the education maintenance allowance.

Nick Gibb: A full equality impact assessment for the introduction of the discretionary learner support fund replacing the education maintenance allowance (EMA) will be published in due course, once final arrangements for the operation of the new fund have been developed. The Department for Education is undertaking that process in consultation with schools, colleges and other stakeholders, informed by the work that the right hon. Member for Bermondsey and Old Southwark (Simon Hughes) will be doing in his capacity as the Government's Advocate for Access to Education. On publication a copy will be placed in the House Libraries.

Further Education: Absenteeism

John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what the level of unauthorised absence was in further education establishments that were  (a) sixth forms and  (b) colleges in each year since 2004.

Nick Gibb: holding answer 8 February 2011
	Information on pupils with unauthorised absence is not collected for further education establishments. The Department collects information on pupil absence for pupils aged five to 15 at the start of the school year from maintained primary and secondary schools, all special schools, city technology colleges and academies.
	Information on absence can be found in Statistical First Release 07/2010 'Pupil Absence in Schools in England, Including Pupil Characteristics: 2008/09' at:
	http://www.education.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000918/index.shtml

Ofsted: Training

Paul Uppal: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what mechanism he has put in place to  (a) train and  (b) monitor the performance of Ofsted inspectors.

Nick Gibb: This is a matter for Ofsted. HM chief inspector, Christine Gilbert, has written to my hon. Friend and a copy of her reply has been placed in the House Libraries.
	 Letter from Christine Gilbert, dated 19 January 2011:
	Your recent Parliamentary Question has been passed to me, as Her Majesty's Chief Inspector, for a response.
	Ofsted inspections are conducted by Her Majesty's Inspectors who are employed directly by Ofsted, and by additional Inspectors employed by Ofsted's inspection service providers (CfBT, Tribal, Serco and Prospects), The training and performance monitoring of inspectors, including Her Majesty's Inspectors, is the responsibility of Ofsted and its contracted inspection service providers.
	 Training for inspectors
	All new inspectors are provided with comprehensive induction, which includes a programme of shadowing inspections. Newly appointed Her Majesty's Inspectors serve a nine month probationary period before their appointment is confirmed. All additional inspectors are authorised as competent to inspect only after direct, first hand observation of their work by experienced Her Majesty's Inspectors.
	Following the induction period, all inspectors are provided with high quality training in the areas they inspect, which includes regular sessions on understanding and applying inspection frameworks. In addition, Her Majesty's Inspectors attend specialist training events (up to six days a year) and technical workshops (three days a year). They are also allocated personal development days, which they are required to use to keep abreast of current developments and to help meet the development objectives set out in their personal development plans.
	 Monitoring inspector performance
	Her Majesty's Inspectors benefit from a robust system of performance management. Regular reviews of performance draw on direct observation of practice, reviews of the evidence they gather, the scrutiny of inspection reports, and school and other provider responses to post-inspection questionnaires. Together, this evidence contributes to mid and end-of-year performance reviews. As a part of their contractual obligations, similar arrangements apply to the inspection service providers' additional inspectors.
	The range of work undertaken by the individual inspection service providers for Ofsted, including the performance of their additional inspectors, is monitored by Ofsted's senior managers at monthly Contract Management Board meetings. The work of all the providers is also scrutinised at quarterly National Programme Board meetings.
	A copy of this reply has been sent to Nick Gibb MP, Minister of State for Schools, and will be placed in the library of both Houses.

Schools: Admissions

Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what estimate his Department has made of the number of surplus places at maintained schools in Birmingham Hall Green constituency in each of the last five years.

Nick Gibb: The Department collects information from each local authority on the number of surplus places in maintained primary and secondary schools (except special schools) via an annual survey. The following tables show the number of surplus places in maintained schools in Birmingham between 2006 and 2010, which are the most recent data available. The numbers of surplus places are reported at local authority level and not broken down by constituency.
	
		
			  Surplus places in maintained primary schools in Birmingham 
			   Surplus places 
			 2006(1) 8,509 
			 2007(1) 8,649 
			 2008(1) 8,730 
			 2009(1) 8,414 
			 2010(2) 7,875 
		
	
	
		
			  Surplus places in maintained secondary schools in Birmingham 
			   Surplus places 
			 2006(1) 2,747 
			 2007(1) 3,107 
			 2008(1) 3,543 
			 2009(1) 3,823 
			 2010(2) 2,783 
			 (1) Number of places relate to the position as at January (2) Number of places relate to the position as at May  Source: Surplus Places Survey & School Capacity Collection

Special Educational Needs: Free Schools

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether specific building regulations are to apply to free schools established to cater solely for children with special educational needs.

Nick Gibb: Every special Free School established to cater only for children with special educational needs will be expected to meet fully the particular needs of their student group throughout their premises. Where construction work or refurbishment is required, the Free School must meet the relevant building regulations for which the Department for Communities and Local Government is responsible. The Department for Education is currently examining all the schools-specific premises regulations with a view to reducing burdens on schools.

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

Animal Welfare

Naomi Long: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will make representations to the European Commission to keep the deadline of March 2013 for marketing of new cosmetic products tested on animals.

Edward Davey: Under the terms of the coalition agreement we shall continue to work to reduce the use of animals in scientific research. However, the European Commission is currently conducting an impact assessment on the effects of the 2013 marketing ban, and it would not be appropriate to pre-judge a UK position when such evidence will be made available.

Apprentices

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the number of apprenticeship places there were in  (a) 1992,  (b) 1997,  (c) 2005 and  (d) 2009.

John Hayes: Table 1 shows the number of Apprenticeship starts in England from 2002/03 to 2009/10.
	
		
			  Table 1: Apprenticeship Programme Starts, 2002/03 to 2009/10 
			  Academic year  Apprenticeship starts 
			 2002/03 167,700 
			 2003/04 193,600 
			 2004/05 189,000 
			 2005/06 175,000 
			 2006/07 184,400 
			 2007/08 224,800 
			 2008/09 239,900 
			 2009/10 279,700 
			  Note: All figures are rounded to the nearest 100.  Source: Individualised Learner Record 
		
	
	Prior to 2002/03, information was collected on a different basis, and therefore is not comparable with later years. Table 2 shows Apprenticeship starts from 1996/97 to 2001/02, as reported in historical Statistical Releases. Information is not available for 1992.
	
		
			  Table 2: Apprenticeship Programme Starts, 1996/97 to 2001/02 
			  Academic year  Apprenticeship starts 
			 1996/97 65,000 
			 1997/98 75,000 
			 1998/99 118,000 
			 1999/00 165,000 
			 2000/01 177,000 
			 2001/02 162,000 
		
	
	Information on the number of Apprenticeship starts is published in a quarterly statistical first release (SFR). The latest SFR was published on 27 January 2011:
	http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/statistics/statisticalfirstrelease/sfr_current

Apprentices

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether his Department has set a target for the number of apprenticeship starts it aims to fund in 2019-20.

John Hayes: The Apprenticeships Programme is demand led. Government do not set targets for apprenticeships but provide funding and forecast the overall number of places that may be afforded. We rely on employers and providers to work together to offer sufficient opportunities to meet local demand, taking advantage of the greater freedoms and flexibilities that we have created in the further education system.
	The BIS paper 'Investing in Skills for Sustainable Growth' confirms our intention, agreed in the spending review that by 2014-15, we will increase annual funding for adult apprenticeships by up to £250 million above the £398 million a year funding inherited from the last Government. So we will have in place sufficient funding for 75,000 more adult apprenticeship places than the previous Government were providing. Funding plans have not been forecast beyond the end of the spending review period.

Apprentices: Finance

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  whether the 100,00 apprenticeship placements announced on 7 February 2011 are additional to the places announced in the Comprehensive Spending Review;
	(2)  how much funding his Department plans to allocate to apprenticeships in 2011-12;
	(3)  whether his announcement of £222 million funding for apprenticeships on 7 February 2011 was in addition to the £250 million funding for adult apprenticeships as part of the Comprehensive Spending Review.

John Hayes: The Apprenticeships Programme is demand led. Government do not set targets for apprenticeships but provide funding and forecast the overall number of places that may be afforded. We rely on employers and providers to work together to offer sufficient opportunities to meet local demand, taking advantage of the greater freedoms and flexibilities that we have created in the further education system.
	For 2011-12 financial year, Government's planned expenditure on apprenticeships training is £1,404 million:
	£799 million for 16 to 18-year olds;
	£605 million for those aged 19 and over(1).
	These figures have been published in the YPLA's 16-19 Funding Statement (November 2010) and my own Department's Investing in Skills for Sustainable Growth (December 2010). No new funding or places have been announced since these documents were published, which both reflect the spending review position.
	The £222 million additional funding described during Apprenticeships Week is an underestimate. The correct figure is £226 million. This is difference between the total budget for 2011-12, described above, and the previous Government's budget for apprenticeships for 2010-11 financial year, which was £1,178 million(2). The budget for apprenticeships in the 2010-11 financial year was subsequently increased by this Government by a further £150 million, as announced in May 2010.
	This increase of £226 million for 2011-12 is part of the £250 million additional funding announced in the spending review, which we expect to be providing by 2014-15.
	(1) 16-18 figures: 16-19 Funding Statement, YPLA (December 2010); 19+ figures: Investing in Skills for Sustainable Growth, BIS (November 2010)
	(2) 16-18 figures: DCSF 16-19 Statement of Priorities and Investment Strategy 2010-11; 19+figures: Skills Investment Strategy 2010-11

Apprentices: Finance

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  whether the £1.4 billion of funding for an increased number of apprenticeship places announced on 7 February 2011 is new funding;
	(2)  on which dates Ministers in his Department have made public announcements on  (a) the creation of apprenticeship places and  (b) funding to be allocated to apprenticeships since May 2010.

John Hayes: On 24 May 2010, the Treasury announced an additional £150 million to fund 50,000 additional places in the 2010-11 financial year.
	On 20 October 2010, the spending review was published by HM Treasury and announced that
	"funding for adult apprenticeships will be increased by £250 million a year by 2014-15, relative to the level inherited from the previous Government".
	The spending review position is reflected in more recent documents. The Department of Business, Innovation and Skills published 'Investing in Skills for Sustainable Growth' on 16 November 2010. This includes information on funding and learner numbers up to 2012-13 for apprenticeships for people aged 19 and over. The Young Person's Learning Agency published a '16-19 Funding Statement' on 20 December 2010 which includes information on funding and starts up to 2012/13 for Apprenticeships for 16 to 19-year-olds.
	For 2011-12 financial year, Government's indicative forecast of expenditure on apprenticeships training is £1,404 million:
	£799 million for 16 to 18-year-olds;
	£605 million for those aged 19 and over.
	These figures were first announced in the BIS document 'Investing in Skills for Sustainable Growth' and the YPLA '16-19 Funding Statement'. This is an increase of £226 million on what the previous Government were providing and is a significant step towards the spending review commitment that runs to 2015.

Banks: Loans

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what representations he has received from small businesses in Greater London on access to finance from banks.

Mark Prisk: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State meets regularly with national business representative bodies-such as the British Chambers of Commerce, the Institute of Directors, and the Confederation of British Industry. At these meetings, a range of matters are discussed, which include access to bank finance for small businesses.
	In addition, the Small Business Economic Forum, chaired by me, meets quarterly. This forum includes representatives from a number of small business representative bodies. The most recent meeting was held on 24 January, and the agenda included items on the progress being made by the British Bankers' Association in implementing their Business Finance Taskforce proposals, and the finance readiness of SMEs.
	These representations have had a national focus. BIS data and other research indicate that access to finance is an issue that affects small businesses all across the UK to a broadly equal extent.

Conditions of Employment

Natascha Engel: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  what the evidential basis is for his decision not to extend the remit of the Gangmasters Licensing Authority to the construction industry;
	(2)  how much funding his Department has allocated to ACAS over the comprehensive spending review period;
	(3)  how much funding his Department has allocated to the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate over the comprehensive spending review period;
	(4)  what steps he is taking to implement the recommendations of the 2009 Hampton Implementation Review report on the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate on the powers of that body to address rogue businesses;
	(5)  which trade unions have  (a) been invited to and  (b) attended meetings with officials of his Department as part of the Government's workplace rights compliance and enforcement review;
	(6)  which representatives of business and trade associations have  (a) been invited to and  (b) attended meetings with officials of his Department on the Government's workplace rights compliance and enforcement review;
	(7)  which  (a) agencies and  (b) enforcement bodies are subject to the Government's workplace rights compliance and enforcement review;
	(8)  what methodology his Department plans to use to quantify the burden on business from enforcement and licensing bodies as part of its review of workplace rights compliance and enforcement arrangements;
	(9)  what funding his Department has allocated for the National Minimum Wage Helpline over the comprehensive spending review period.

Edward Davey: An extension of gangmaster licensing to the construction or other sectors would impose new inspection and fee burdens on businesses and entail additional costs for Government. It can be an appropriate response to particular problems in particular sectors, but should be considered only when certain conditions have been met. These conditions include: evidence that existing regulation is inadequate; evidence of significant abuses of employment rights; and confidence that a licensing system would be a proportionate and effective way of tackling the problem areas. Any licensing scheme must also be practicable, enforceable and affordable. The Government are not persuaded that these conditions are met for the construction sector.
	The workplace rights compliance and enforcement review is concerned primarily with the employment rights and related protections that are enforced by Government bodies and agencies. The relevant bodies and agencies are HM Revenue and Customs (for National Minimum Wage enforcement), the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate (EAS), the Gangmaster Licensing Authority and the Health and Safety Executive (in its capacity as the main enforcement body for the 48 hour average working week and other aspects of the Working Time regulations).
	The first phase of the compliance and enforcement review is being carried out internally within Government. Meetings with business and trade associations and trade unions have not yet been arranged.
	In carrying out the review BIS will, where necessary, use the Government's standard impact assessment methodology in quantifying burdens on businesses arising from the activity of enforcement and licensing bodies.
	Information about impact assessment methodology is set out in documents published by the Better Regulation Executive, including: "Impact Assessment Guidance" and the "Impact Assessment (IA) Toolkit" available from:
	www.bis.gov.uk
	The EAS has implemented the recommendations in the Hampton Implementation Review report, including the development of a risk-based process for determining inspection priorities. The compliance and enforcement review will examine whether the current powers and penalties available to the EAS and the other enforcement bodies are fit for purpose, and whether they need to be strengthened or modified.
	BIS has allocated ACAS £47.839 million for 2011-12. Allocations for the remaining three years of the comprehensive spending review period have not yet been determined. The EAS is funded from BIS's administration budget. Allocations have not yet been made for the spending review period.
	Telephone inquiries about the National Minimum Wage and complaints of abuse are handled by the Pay and Work Rights line which provides a single point of contact for queries about all the government-enforced workplace rights. BIS has allocated funding of £0.9 million for the helpline for 2011-12. Allocations for the remaining three years of the spending review period have not yet been determined.

Consumers: Advisory Services

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 1 February 2011,  Official Report, columns 716-17W, on consumers: advisory services, what progress has been made to date in his Department's discussions with the consumer organisation Which? about making wider use of its online information; and when he expects the discussions to conclude.

Edward Davey: This Department has helped to facilitate discussions between Which?, who remain committed to making their free online information more widely available, Citizens Advice, The Office of Fair Trading and Direct.gov. They have agreed in principle to work together but there are numerous operational issues to be resolved and it is too early to say when these discussions will conclude.

Departmental Carbon Emissions

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent steps his Department has taken to reduce its carbon emissions to meet the target of reducing central Government carbon emissions by 10 per cent. by June 2011.

Edward Davey: The Department is fully committed to meeting the 10% carbon reduction target by May 2011. Initiatives that have taken place include the installation of voltage reduction equipment in its main headquarters building, 1 Victoria
	street, removal of surplus point of use water heaters in toilet blocks and installation of timers on lifts so they can be shut off out of hours.
	The Department is reducing the size of its estate in Central London and staff will be co-located into 1 Victoria street by the end of March, allowing us to mothball buildings.
	A temperature deadband that is operating between 20-24 degrees is contributing towards savings and engineers are continuing to monitor plant operating times to see where these can be limited to bring about savings while maintaining comfortable working conditions for staff. The Department operated a partial shutdown of its 1 Victoria street building during Christmas week with heating only provided to the 'spur' of the building.
	Energy saving behaviours by staff are being encouraged through intranet articles, posters and environmental awareness days.
	The Department's executive agencies are also all fully committed to the 10% reduction target and are implementing initiatives covering heating and ventilation plant, ICT and behavioural change.

Export Credit Guarantees: Democratic Republic of Congo

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills which projects in the Democratic Republic of Congo supported by the Export Credits Guarantee Department (ECGD) owed debt to the ECGD prior to the cancellation of debt in 2010.

Edward Davey: holding answer 11 February 2011
	The debt owed to ECGD by the Democratic Republic of Congo that was recently cancelled related to some 30 export transactions, all of which took place before 30 June 1983. Details of the goods or services supplied under the individual contracts are no longer held.

Exports: Scotland

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent discussions he has had with the Scottish Government on steps to encouraging exports; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Prisk: The Secretary of State has met his Scottish counterparts to discuss a wide range of issues, including support for business.
	As you know, trade and investment are devolved matters. However, UK Trade and Investment (UKTI), as the Government's lead provider of international trade and investment support to businesses, provides information, advice and guidance to businesses of all types and sizes about trading internationally and investing in the UK. UKTI maintains strong links with Scottish Development International (SDI), the trade and investment arm of the Scottish Government. Companies in Scotland can access the majority of UKTI's services as well as those provided by SDI, including access to UKTI's overseas network of offices.
	Recently UKTI gave evidence to the Scottish Affairs Committee-Supporting Scotland's Economy, which set out in detail the relationship between the two organisations and how we are working together to support businesses, including exporters, in Scotland. The transcript of the oral evidence can be found at:
	http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201011/cmselect/cmscotaf/c657-i/c65701.htm
	The Government's Trade and Investment White Paper published on 9 February highlights the Government's aim to promote growth in all parts of the UK and their commitment to continue to work closely with all the devolved Administrations, particularly on support for exporters, to build on the benefits of devolution. The White Paper also confirms that UKTI will launch its new strategy later in 2011 which will set out the practical help and support British exporters and investors will receive from the Government.

Graduates: Finance

David Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what plans he has to increase the provision of funding and loans available to postgraduate students.

David Willetts: Lord Browne found that the postgraduate system works well as it is. We will, as Lord Browne suggested, monitor participation in postgraduate study to identify whether changes to the undergraduate funding and finance system have any effect on entry to postgraduate courses.
	The Government provide funding to students studying for a Postgraduate Certificate in Education through the student loans system, and to other postgraduates through the Professional and Career Development Loan programme. The Government currently have no plans to change this provision.

Graduates: Loans

David Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many applications for postgraduate loans his Department received in 2010; and what proportion of these were refused.

David Willetts: The Government provide funding to students studying for a Postgraduate Certificate in Education through the student loans system, and to other postgraduates through the Professional and Career Development Loan (PCDLs) programme.
	In the 2009-10 financial year, three-quarters, over 6,000, of PCDLs were for postgraduate study. The number of refused PCDL applications is not available, as the PCDL-lending banks do not record the intended study profile of unsuccessful applicants.
	For the academic year 2010/11, a total of 22,650 loan applications were received from students intending to study for a Postgraduate Certificate in Education, of these, 100 applicants (0.4%) were not eligible for a loan.

Green Investment Bank

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 17 January 2011,  Official Report, column 620W, on the Green Investment Bank, whether he has set a target amount of the overall proceeds from asset sales which will complement departmental funding for the Green Investment Bank.

Mark Prisk: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 10 February 2011,  Official Report, column 386W.

Green Investment Bank

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether the Green Investment Bank will lend to  (a) carbon capture and storage projects and  (b) clean coal projects.

Mark Prisk: We are looking to build a Green Investment Bank (GIB) with a wide remit, which is able to tackle financing issues affecting the deployment of green infrastructure.
	Carbon capture and storage, and clean coal will play an important part in our future energy mix, and the Government are providing funding to demonstrate these technologies. In due course, when these technologies are more mature, it is possible that the GIB could help to finance their deployment.
	We will make a detailed announcement in May.

Green Investment Bank

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether he plans to enable the Green Investment Bank to take equity in technology development companies.

Mark Prisk: The Green Investment Bank (GIB) will tackle financing issues affecting green infrastructure. There are currently no plans for it to provide venture capital. The Government already support the development of new technology based businesses through a range of early stage venture capital funds, for example the Enterprise Capital Fund.
	We are, however, looking to build a GIB capable of targeting the UK's infrastructure challenges for the long term. Evidence suggests an early GIB priority could be financing for the low carbon power sector (given our 2020 targets). We might then look to grow the GIB into other areas as further evidence and funding becomes available.

Higher Education: Admissions

David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills when he expects to publish details of the National Scholarship Scheme.

David Willetts: Broad details were announced on Thursday 10 February and the information has been placed in the Libraries of the House.

Higher Education: Admissions

David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what consideration he gave to bursaries as an alternative to tuition fee remission as a means of enabling British students from low income backgrounds to attend university as part of the National Scholarship Scheme.

David Willetts: Research commissioned by the Office for Fair Access(1) last year found that the introduction of bursaries had not influenced the choice of university for disadvantaged young people. We have therefore placed a £1,000 limit on the amount that can be awarded by way of a cash scholarship or bursary under the National Scholarship Programme (NSP). This will be combined with other assistance to ensure that students receive at least the £3,000 minimum value of an award. Broad details about the NSP were placed in the Libraries of the House on Thursday 10 February.
	(1 )Have bursaries influenced choices between institutions? Office for Fair Access, 2010.

Higher Education: Finance

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what the monetary value was of teaching grants to universities accounted for under the annually managed expenditure of his Department and its predecessors was in  (a) 2005-06,  (b) 2006-07, (c) 2007-08,  (d) 2008-09 and  (e) 2009-10.

David Willetts: Teaching grants to universities are not accounted for as Annually Managed Expenditure, but instead form part of the departmental expenditure limit (DEL).
	The DEL budgets allocated (via the Higher Education Funding Council for England) for teaching grants to universities were:
	
		
			   £ million 
			 2005-06 4,339 
			 2006-07 4,567 
			 2007-08 4,766 
			 2008-09 4,920 
			 2009-10 5,076 
		
	
	Further details can be found in the relevant HEFCE grant letters.

Innovation

Julian Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the potential benefits to the economy of innovation vouchers.

David Willetts: Innovation vouchers are a pilot business support product that has been trialled by the regional development agencies (RDAs) as a means to support collaboration between small businesses and knowledge base institutions. The vouchers have been piloted in different forms across the regions to help assess their effectiveness for business.
	The Technology Strategy Board (TSB) is currently looking at the evaluations of the different regional schemes to consider if a similar scheme could be introduced in England over future years.
	The TSB is also working with businesses and partners, including the RDAs, to develop its new strategic plan which will be published over the spring. This strategy will provide further information on the range of business support products and programmes that the TSB will support from this April to help incentivise future business and technology-based innovation.

Money Lenders: Crime

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 2 February 2011,  Official Report, columns 828-29W, on money lenders: crime, how much money was allocated to each specialist regional team to tackle the problem of unscrupulous lenders in each year since 2004; and what plans he has for funding for such teams in the period to 2014-15.

Edward Davey: The allocations of funding per team since 2004 are illustrated in the following table:
	On 29 December 2010, the Government announced further funding of £5.2 million to continue the fight against illegal money lenders in 2011/12. Funding for future years, beyond 2011/12, will be considered at a later stage.
	
		
			  Allocation of funding per team since 2004 
			Funding (£) 
			  Region  September 2004 to March  2007  2007/08  2008/09  2009/10  2010/11 
			 Scotland Pilot team 463,000 461,995 475,250 475,250 
			 Wales - 489,000 585,000 625,312 625,312 
			 South-West - 442,600 570,284 587,372 587,372 
			 North-East - 341,094 391,571 450,000 450,000 
			 East midlands - 437,734 476,208 490,494 490,494 
			 London - 448,064 635,000 655,000 655,000 
			 West midlands including Yorkshire and Humberside, north-west, south-east and East of England Pilot team 858,000 1,850,000 1,905,500 1,905,500 
			   
			 Total £3.6 million in total 3,479,492 4,970,058 5,188,928 5,188,928

Overseas Students

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many students from each non-EU country were enrolled on undergraduate courses in each of the last five years.

David Willetts: The numbers of non-EU undergraduate enrolments at UK higher education institutions are shown by country of domicile for the academic years 2005/06 to 2009/10. The tables will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
	Figures for the 2010/11 academic year will become available from January 2012.

Part-time Education: Admissions

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether his guidance to the Office for Fair Access will cover the status of part-time students from 2012.

David Willetts: Yes. The guidance letter to the Director of Fair Access, published on 10 February, says that, subject to parliamentary approval, the Government intend to bring part-time courses within the scope of the Higher Education Act 2004. This will mean that any institution wishing to charge above the basic level for such courses, as defined, will first need the approval of the Director of Fair Access through an Access Agreement.

Renewable Energy: Export Credit Guarantees

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what projects have been supported by the Export Credits Guarantee Department through the £50 million credit line for exports of renewable energy to developing countries established in 2003.

Edward Davey: holding answer 11 February 2011
	ECGD has recently issued guarantees with an aggregate value of £31 million in support of two renewable energy projects. One involves converting waste to energy and the other relates to the production of compressed natural gas from gas that would otherwise be flared.
	Support for exports of renewable energy goods or services to developing countries is available as part of ECGD's credit risk global capacity, subject to its standard risk criteria. The total capacity available from ECGD to support all eligible exports, including renewable energy goods and services, is substantial and far exceeds £50 million.

Students: Fees and Charges

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the average debt attributable to fees incurred by students for qualifications in  (a) medicine,  (b) veterinary sciences,  (c) architecture and  (d) dentistry in each of the last five years; and if he will estimate the average such debt in each of the next 10 years.

David Willetts: Statistics on the average size of tuition fee loans taken out by full-time undergraduate higher education students are published by the Student Loans Company in 'Student Support for Higher Education in England, Academic Year 2010/11', which is accessible at:
	http://www.slc.co.uk/pdf/slcsfr072010.pdf
	Latest figures showed that, on average, students took out Tuition Fee Loans worth £2,980 in academic year 2009/10. Provisional figures for 2010/11 show that, on average, students were awarded Tuition Fee Loans worth £3,110; the equivalent provisional figure in 2009/10 was £3,020. Consistent information is not available by subject.
	Estimates for the next 10 years are not available.

Students: Finance

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the  (a) monetary value and  (b) proportion of irrecoverable student loans accounted for under the annually managed expenditure of his Department and its predecessors in (i) 2005-06, (i) 2006-07, (iii) 2007-08, (iv) 2008-09 and (v) 2009-10.

David Willetts: The Department values student loans based on the future expected repayments of the loans. This valuation (which includes an estimate and further explanation of how the loan is valued and the amount that is irrecoverable) is updated every year and published in the Resource Accounts of the Department (and its predecessors).
	The 2005-06 and 2006-07 Resource Accounts for the Department for Education and Skills can currently be found here:
	http://dfe.gov.uk/aboutdfe/departmentalinformation/reports/a00390/annual-departmental-reports-accounts-and-spending-reviews
	The 2007-08 Resource Accounts for the Department of Innovation, Universities and Skills (HC864) can be found here:
	http://www.bis.gov.uk/assets/biscore/corporate/migratedD/ec_group/77-08-C_on
	The 2008-09 Resource Accounts for the Department of Innovation, Universities and Skills (HC457) can be found here
	http://www.bis.gov.uk/assets/biscore/corporate/migratedD/publications/R/Resource_accounts_08_09
	The 2009-10 Resource Accounts for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (HC 211)
	http://www.bis.gov.uk/assets/biscore/corporate/docs/b/10-p102-bis-resource-accounts-2009-10.pdf
	The Department is currently reviewing options to monetise the loan book but at present no alternative valuations are used.

Students: Loans

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  pursuant to the answer of 31 January 2011,  Official Report, column 600W, on overseas students: EU nationals, what estimate the Student Loans Company has made of the number of former students about whom it no longer holds accurate information on locations and earnings; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  how many former students have moved overseas and not notified the Student Loans Company in each of the last three years; what the total monetary value of outstanding loans was for such students in each such year; and if he will make a statement.

David Willetts: holding answer 4 February 2011
	It is not possible for the Student Loans Company (SLC) to estimate the number of former students who have moved abroad and not notified the company. The SLC cannot therefore provide the monetary value of outstanding loans for such students.

Technology Strategy Board

Julian Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what mechanisms are in place to assess the  (a) activities and  (b) performance of the Technology Strategy Board at local level.

David Willetts: The mechanisms the Technology Strategy Board uses to deliver support, such as Collaborative R and D, Knowledge Transfer Networks and Knowledge Transfer Partnerships, are evaluated on a regular basis (usually every two years) as part of the evaluation of the products which come under the Support for Business portfolio to ensure that they continue to meet the needs of business and deliver successful results.
	Additionally, the Technology Strategy Board undertakes separate in-depth evaluations of each of its Support for Business products-a review of Knowledge Transfer Partnerships was completed in 2010, a review of Knowledge Transfer Networks was completed in 2008, and an evaluation of the Collaborative R and D scheme is currently under way.
	The Technology Strategy Board also undertakes post project evaluation at one year and five years after the end of the project, particularly to understand the economic impact.
	It is also currently undertaking work to further develop a framework to continue to develop and refine its metrics and impact measures to be able understand at a more detailed level the impact of its activities.
	The Technology Strategy Board will be the subject of a formal five-yearly review in 2012 which will assess its performance among other issues.

UK Trade and Investment: Contracts

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many contracts to carry out work for UK Trade and Investment were put out to tender in each of the last five years; and what the value of such contracts was.

Edward Davey: UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) is a joint department of the Department for Business Innovation and Skills and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Its people are deployed in 160 locations across 96 different countries, nine English regions, London and Glasgow.
	From 1 April 2010 UKTI has maintained a consolidated register of contracts. For 2010-11 UKTI let 108 contracts to the value of £32.4 million. For periods prior to this, information is not available; to obtain it would require surveying each post/location, and to do so would incur disproportionate cost.

UK Trade and Investment: Exports

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the monetary value of  (a) export and  (b) import contracts in each region of the UK arising from work carried out by UK Trade and Investment in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

Mark Prisk: Through its Performance and Impact Monitoring Survey (PIMS)-an independently administered survey of some 4,000 companies per annum out of some 24,000 clients that have received services over a 12-month period-UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) tracks the value of financial benefits attributed by British businesses in participation in all of its trade services, measured in terms of additional profit.
	The following table sets out an estimate of the value of exports arising from UKTI over the last four years:
	
		
			   2009-10  2008-09  2007-08  2007-06 
			 Average £ benefits 222,000 175,000 139,000 115,000 
			 Total additional profit for UK business reported annually by UKTI  (£ billion) 5.2 3.6 3.0 2.5 
			 Estimated total export sales (£ billion) 35 25 20 17.5 
			 Defence export sales reported annually by UKTI (£ billion) 7.0 4.0 10 n/a 
			 Estimated total value of exports (£ billion) 42 29 30 17.5 
		
	
	Financial benefits are not calculated regionally. However a breakdown of qualitative benefits to business productivity and competitiveness reported by clients of the International Trade Advisers in the English regions are available and all results are published on the UKTI website at:
	http://www.ukti.gov.uk/uktihome/aboutukti/ourperformance/performanceimpactandmonitoringsurvey.html
	UKTI does not offer services to those businesses that are looking for assistance to source or import goods from overseas. Although business internationalisation can include importing and sourcing overseas, UKTI can deliver the greatest taxpayer value by focusing its resources on helping UK companies overcome barriers to selling into new markets and begin exporting.

UK Trade and Investment: Location

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  what the location is of each office of UK Trade and Investment; and how many staff are employed in each office;
	(2)  how many salaried staff are employed by UK Trade and Investment; and in which locations such staff are employed.

Edward Davey: The UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) is not an employer in its own right; for the majority of its human resource requirements it draws on civil service staff employed by one or other of its two parent Departments-the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO). UKTI also draws on the expertise of the private sector.
	The details of our people and their locations are set out in UK Trade and Investment's Resource Accounts 2009-10 (HC3)-at Annexes L and M, pages 109-110:
	http://www.ukti.gov.uk/uktihome/item/114708.html

UK Trade and Investment: Manpower

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many consultants are employed by UK Trade and Investment; and in which locations such consultants are employed.

Edward Davey: The UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) is not an employer in its own right; for the majority of its human resource requirements it draws on civil service staff employed by one or other of its two parent departments-the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO).
	In the last year UKTI incurred costs of £215,000 covering nine contracts relating to the provision of strategic advice on Information Communications Technology, the Global Entrepreneurs Programme, High Growth Markets and New Industry New Jobs (now Britain Open for Business). All of these were delivered in London.

Universities: Anti-Semitism

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  what recent meetings he has had with the Board of Deputies of British Jews about  (a) levels of and  (b) the Government's response to anti-Semitism on university campuses; what matters were discussed; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  if he will take steps to require universities to report on the steps they have taken to  (a) prevent anti-Semitism,  (b) protect Jewish students attending the university from anti-Semitism and  (c) prevent speakers with a known history of (i) anti-Semitism and (ii) Islamic extremism from speaking at the university; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  for what reasons his Department has made no representations to higher education authorities about invitations to speakers with a history of promoting anti-Semitism on campus; and if he will make a statement.

David Willetts: I have not met the Board of Deputies for British Jews. However, I accepted an invitation from the hon. Member for Bassetlaw to meet him and a range of Jewish community organisations, in October last year, to discuss the treatment of Jewish students in higher education. The organisations concerned were the Community Security Trust and the Union of Jewish Students and the meeting also involved Universities UK and the Equality Challenge Unit.
	There is no place for racism of any form, such as anti-Semitism, in higher education. Universities have the primary responsibility for ensuring that their students are not subject to threatening or abusive behaviour on campus and have access to a strong legislative framework and guidance to help them deal effectively with instances of intolerance, racism and harassment in their institutions. Universities also hold the responsibility to communicate with their students and staff about what steps they take to tackle intolerance and anti-Semitism.
	Decisions about external speakers must rest with universities themselves. In this area universities are bound by the law both in protecting freedom of speech on campus, even if that free expression is controversial, and protecting students and staff against harassment or violence. Universities have access to guidance from both Government and the sector itself on promoting good campus relations, which draw out the considerations institutions need to give to free expression on campus and to addressing illegal behaviour. Institutions also take advice about external speakers from their local police forces when needed.

Vocational Guidance

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills by what means he plans to monitor the quality of advice given by the all-age careers service.

John Hayes: We will require all contractors delivering the all-age careers service to meet a predefined quality standard such as the matrix standard, which is used for the Next Step adult careers service. We will also monitor the quality of advice through a range of actions including independent and rigorous inspection by Ofsted, reporting of performance against contractual requirements and regular customer satisfaction surveys conducted at national and regional levels.

Vocational Guidance

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the financial savings to his Department arising from the establishment of an all-age careers advice service.

John Hayes: We are working through the detail of the spending review settlement, and will confirm the level of funding for the all-age service as soon as possible. It will be important that we make efficient and innovative use of the funding that is available to achieve the best possible value for money.

JUSTICE

Appeals

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many appeals there have been against convictions for offences relating to terrorism since 1 January 2001; and how many such appeals were successful.

Nick Herbert: The Home Office does not hold data on the number of appeals there have been against convictions for offences relating to terrorism since January 2001. However, the Home Office does publish data on appeals from 2007-08 to 2009-10 which include both appeals against conviction and sentence. This information is contained in the following table which the Home Office publishes annually as part of the Statistical Bulletin Operation of Police Powers under the Terrorism Act 2000 and Subsequent Legislation: Arrests, Outcomes and Stops and Searches. The link to the latest edition of the publication is:
	http://rds.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs10/hosb1810.pdf
	
		
			  Appeals and outcomes for terrorism convictions against court conviction or sentences, 2007-08 to 2009-10 
			  Outcome of appeal  Number  Percentage 
			 Sentence varied: 24 47 
			  Of which:   
			 Sentence reduced 20 39 
			 Sentence increased 4 8 
			 Conviction quashed 7 14 
			 Appeal not accepted 20 39 
			 Total 51 100

Assisted Prison Visits Unit: Mental Health

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will make it his policy to extend the Assisted Prison Visits Scheme to include patients held under mental health legislation.

Crispin Blunt: There are no plans to extend the Assisted Prison Visits Scheme to cover patients held under the Mental Health Act. In these circumstances, these individuals are NHS patients.

Bribery

Tom Clarke: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he plans to implement those provisions of the Bribery Act 2010 which have not yet been brought into force.

Kenneth Clarke: The Government are committed to the implementation of the Bribery Act. I am determined to ensure that it is implemented in a way which tackles bribery but does not impose unnecessary cost and uncertainty on legitimate business and trade. I am therefore working on the statutory guidance required to make that guidance practical and useful for legitimate business and trade. It will be published once I am confident that it addresses the legitimate concerns of all those who took part in the consultation process. This will be followed by a three-month notice period before full implementation of the Act.

Bribery

Brian Binley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice which bodies his Department consulted in drawing up guidance on the implementation of the Bribery Act 2010.

Kenneth Clarke: The public consultation on the guidance about commercial organisations preventing bribery, which required written responses in November last year, produced substantial and helpful replies from business, anti-bribery organisations and other interested parties. We are considering carefully all the representations we have received. Subject to considering any particular requests for confidentiality, we intend to publish the written responses.

Bribery

Brian Binley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what representations he received from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development on the implementation of the Bribery Act 2010.

Kenneth Clarke: The Secretary-General of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development wrote to me on 27 January on matters including his support for the implementation of the Bribery Act. I spoke to him on 3 February to update him on our plans for the implementation of the Act.

Convictions: Sentencing

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how many people were convicted for offences under section 4 of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 for putting people in fear of violence and were  (a) fined,  (b) given a custodial sentence and  (c) fined and received a custodial sentence in each year since 1998;
	(2)  how many people received a summary conviction under section 4 of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 of putting people in fear of violence and were subsequently sentenced to  (a) a term of imprisonment,  (b) a fine and  (c) both a term of imprisonment and a fine in each year since 1998.

Crispin Blunt: The number of persons found guilty at all courts and the number of persons issued with a fine, given a custodial sentence or given a custodial sentence and issued with a fine, under section 4 of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997, in England and Wales, 1998 to 2009 (latest available) is shown in table 1 as follows.
	The number of persons who were convicted at magistrates courts, and the number of persons issued with a fine, given a custodial sentence, or given a custodial sentence and issued with a fine, under section 4 of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997, in England and Wales, 1998 to 2009 (latest available) is shown in table 2 as follows.
	Data for 2010 are planned for publication in the spring of 2011.
	
		
			  Table 1: Number of persons found guilty at all courts and the number of persons issued with a fine, given a custodial sentence or given a custodial sentence and issued with a fine, under section 4 of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 England and Wales 1998 to 2009( 1, 2, 3) 
			  Offence description  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008( 4)  2009 
			  Putting people in fear of violence 
			 Found guilty 522 513 574 590 639 674 717 806 875 814 839 786 
			 Sentenced(5) 514 519 580 594 635 674 725 805 876 818 820 779 
			  Of which: 
			 Fine 66 83 51 57 52 48 38 35 32 19 21 15 
			 Immediate custody 121 122 169 157 182 126 134 157 160 140 170 170 
			 Immediate custody and a fine(6) 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Other sentences(7) 327 314 359 379 401 500 553 613 684 659 629 594 
			 (1 )The following statutes were used for the corresponding offence: Putting people in fear of violence Protection from Harassment Act 1997, S.4 Racially aggravated putting people in fear of violence Protection from Harassment Act 1997, S.4 as amended by Crime and Disorder Act 1998 S.32(1)(b) & (4) Religiously aggravated putting people in fear of violence Protection from Harassment Act 1997, S.4 as amended by Crime and Disorder Act 1998 S.32(1)(b) & (3) Racially or religiously aggravated putting people in fear of violence Protection from Harassment Act 1997, S.4 as amended by Crime and Disorder Act 1998 S.32(1)(b) & (3) (2) The figures given in the table on court proceedings relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (4) Excludes data for Cardiff magistrates court for April, July and August 2008. (5) The sentenced column may exceed those found guilty as it may be the case that a defendant found guilty, and committed for sentence at the Crown court, may be sentenced in the following year. (6) Where immediate custody was the principal disposal and the fine was a secondary disposal. (7) Includes: Absolute/conditional discharge, Community Sentence, Suspended Sentence and Otherwise dealt with.  Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services, Ministry of Justice. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Number of persons who were convicted at magistrates courts, and the number of persons issued with a fine, given a custodial sentence, or given a custodial sentence and issued with a fine, under section 4 of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997( 1, 2, 3) 
			  Offence description  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008( 4)  2009 
			  Putting people in fear of violence 
			 Found guilty 420 399 405 403 403 388 399 511 553 469 492 520 
			 Sentenced 389 373 381 378 370 363 372 462 485 406 423 439 
			  Of which: 
			 Fine 64 77 47 51 48 43 35 31 28 17 19 14 
			 Immediate custody 58 55 74 55 72 70 68 94 97 76 77 101 
			 Immediate custody and a fine(5) 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Other sentences(6) 267 241 259 271 250 250 269 337 360 313 327 324 
			 (1 )The following statutes were used for the corresponding offence: Putting people in fear of violence Protection from Harassment Act 1997, S.4 Racially aggravated putting people in fear of violence Protection from Harassment Act 1997, S.4 as amended by Crime and Disorder Act 1998 S.32(1)(b) & (4) Religiously aggravated putting people in fear of violence Protection from Harassment Act 1997, S.4 as amended by Crime and Disorder Act 1998 S.32(1)(b) & (3) Racially or religiously aggravated putting people in fear of violence Protection from Harassment Act 1997, S.4 as amended by Crime and Disorder Act 1998 S.32(1)(b) & (3) (2) The figures given in the table on court proceedings relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (4) Excludes data for Cardiff magistrates court for April, July and August 2008. (5) Where immediate custody was the principal disposal and the fine was a secondary disposal. (6) Includes: Absolute/conditional discharge, Community Sentence, Suspended Sentence and Otherwise dealt with.  Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services, Ministry of Justice.

Corruption

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what discussions he has had with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development on the decision to delay the implementation of the Bribery Act 2010.

Kenneth Clarke: I spoke to the Secretary-General of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development on 3 February to update him on the Government's plans for implementation of the Bribery Act.

Corruption

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimate his Department has made of the likely costs to businesses of implementing the provisions of the Bribery Act 2010.

Kenneth Clarke: An impact assessment was published by the then Secretary of State for Justice in 2009 for the introduction of the Bribery Bill. We have obtained further representations on the subject in the course of the consultation process.

Corruption

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  whether the proposal to delay the implementation of the Bribery Act 2010 was discussed in Cabinet before the decision was announced on 31 January 2011;
	(2)  what discussions he has had with  (a) the Prime Minister,  (b) the Chancellor of the Exchequer and  (c) the Secretary of State for International Development over the decision to delay the implementation of the Bribery Act 2010; and whether any representatives of a private sector organisation were party to such discussions;
	(3)  what  (a) discussions and  (b) correspondence he has had with the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills on his decision to delay implementation of the Bribery Act 2010; and if he will publish each item of written correspondence.

Kenneth Clarke: It is not the constitutional practice to disclose details of ministerial discussions.

Corruption: Business

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether he plans to bring forward legislative proposals on corruption in  (a) international and  (b) domestic business.

Kenneth Clarke: No, I have no such plans. The Government are committed to the implementation of the Bribery Act.

Corruption: Legislation

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of UK anti-corruption legislation; and what information his Department holds on corruption legislation in international trading partner countries for benchmarking purposes.

Kenneth Clarke: The Government are committed to the implementation of the Bribery Act, which reforms the existing offences of bribery under common law and the Prevention of Corruption Acts 1889-1916. We do not hold information for benchmarking purposes on corruption legislation in international trading partners, but the UK is a party to the Council of Europe Criminal Law Convention on Corruption, the OECD Convention against Foreign Bribery and the United Nations Convention against Corruption and participates in their evaluation mechanisms.

Departmental Energy

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether he plans to extend the use of real time energy display to buildings occupied by his Department beyond its headquarters.

Jonathan Djanogly: The Ministry of Justice has already extended real time energy display online to two of its London buildings: Clive House and Steel House in addition to its headquarters. The National Archives at Kew also has their real time energy display online.

Departmental Energy

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much the Department has saved in  (a) energy costs and  (b) carbon dioxide emissions since bringing in real time energy display.

Jonathan Djanogly: The Ministry of Justice has saved £140,673 in energy costs and 761.55 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions since bringing in real time energy display in addition to a range of other initiatives designed to save energy and reduce carbon dioxide emissions from the office estate. These are published on the internet and can be seen at:
	http://data.gov.uk/departmental-performance-co2-emissions-reduction-date
	in the attachment titled: "10 percent reduction pack for online publication Dec update - pub Feb v1.pdf" page 15 refers.

Employment Tribunals

Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what proportion of successful applicants at employment tribunals were  (a) represented and  (b) unrepresented in the latest 12 months for which figures are available.

Jonathan Djanogly: The latest 12-month period for which figures are available is the 2009-10 financial year. Table 1 sets out the proportion of successful claims by reference to representation of the claimant. Table 2 sets out a more detailed breakdown of the cases involved.
	
		
			  Table 1: Proportion of claimants with successful claims who were represented/unrepresented in financial year 2009-10 
			   Percentage 
			 Represented 44 
			 Unrepresented 56 
			  Source: Employment Tribunal Central Database December 2010 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Claims where claimants were successful at hearing during the 200910 financial year by reference to the representation of claimants 
			  2009-10  Successful at hearing  Successful default judgment  Total successful 
			 Total represented(1) 14,200 5,100 19,300 
			 Solicitor 8,800 2,400 11,200 
			 Citizens Advice Bureau 960 720 1,700 
			 Private Individual 510 200 720 
			 Union 350 140 500 
			 Law Centre 590 470 1,100 
			 Trade Association (2)- (2)- 5 
			 Free Representation Unit 100 30 130 
			 Other 2,900 1,100 4,000 
			 Total Unrepresented 14,300 10,400 24,800 
			 (1) Represented: Trade Union, Trade Association, Solicitor, Citizens Advice Bureau, Free Representation Unit, Private individual, Law Centre and Other. (2) Small value, less than 5  Note: Rounding: Figures in tables are rounded independently and thus may not add to totals. The following conventions have been used: Values less than 100 rounded to nearest five; Values from 100 to 999 are rounded to nearest 10; and Values of 1,000 and over are rounded to nearest 100.  Source: Employment Tribunal Central Database December 2010

Employment Tribunals: Witnesses

Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the mean number of witnesses asked to attend an employment tribunal hearing was in the last 12 months for which figures are available.

Jonathan Djanogly: The Tribunals Service does not hold this information.

Human Trafficking

Justin Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent assessment he has made of the support available for trafficked persons in the South West.

Crispin Blunt: There has been no recent assessment of support services for victims of human trafficking specifically located in the south-west. Adults trafficked in England and Wales can access specialist support and accommodation through the National Referral Mechanism, a multi-agency framework for identifying victims of trafficking and referring them to support services.
	The Government fund support for adult victims through a national model and Government-funded support providers accept referrals for support from anywhere within England and Wales. Responsibility for the care, protection and accommodation of child trafficking victims falls within the designated responsibilities of local authorities for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all children under the provisions of the 1989 and 2004 Children Acts.

Human Trafficking: Finance

Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much funding his Department has provided for the accommodation of adult victims of human trafficking in 2010-11 to date.

Crispin Blunt: Over the course of the financial year 2010-11, the Ministry of Justice has provided a total of £950,000 to voluntary-sector organisations to accommodate and support adult victims of human trafficking.
	Grant funding of £900,000 was paid to Eaves Housing for Women to provide accommodation and outreach support to adult women trafficked for sexual exploitation or domestic servitude. In addition to accommodation for victims, this grant has been used to fund the coordination of service provision, the salaries of support workers and other ancillary services.
	The Ministry of Justice also awarded a grant of £50,000 to Migrant Helpline to support adult female victims of human trafficking who have suffered sexual exploitation. This grant funding was limited to direct support provision only.

Immigration and Asylum: Appeals

Richard Fuller: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  what the average waiting time was for appeals to the Immigration and Asylum Chamber from receipt of the application to promulgation in the latest period for which figures are available; and what the equivalent figure was in each of the last two years;
	(2)  what plans his Department has to reduce the average period elapsing between an application for and a hearing in the Immigration and Asylum Chamber.

Jonathan Djanogly: The following table provides the average waiting time between receipt of appeal at the tribunal and promulgation of the decision. These data are provided for each of the four main categories of appeal dealt with by the First Tier of the Immigration and Asylum Chamber (IAC).
	
		
			   Average  calendar weeks  from  r eceipt at IAC to  p romulgation 
			   April 2008 to March 2009  April 2009 to March 2010  April 2010 to September 2010 
			 Asylum 7.7 8.1 8.4 
			 Entry Clearance Officer 26.9 31.8 29.7 
			 Managed Migration 8.9 11.2 16.5 
			 Visit Visa 23.9 24.8 23.8 
			  Note: Data excludes Deport Appeals and HR/DC/RD cases.  Source: SMR-09: 2008-09 (extracted 8 February 2011), 2009-10 (30 December 2010), 2010-11 (3 February 2011). 
		
	
	The tribunal received an unexpectedly high volume of managed migration appeals during 2009-10 and this has had a significant impact on waiting times in most appeal categories over the last 18 months. This surge of work has now been cleared and waiting times are beginning to improve. We expect this to be evident when we publish our Quarter 3 statistics at the end of March. I will ensure that a copy of those statistics is sent to the hon. Member.
	We are working closely with the United Kingdom Border Agency to improve workflow communications between Departments to speed up the overall process, including exploring increased use of technology to modernise the system. We are looking specifically at how we might further speed up the system, including avoiding unnecessary postponements and adjournments, and to minimise abuse of the system. Finally, we are working together to improve the forecasting of appeal volumes to ensure that the end to end system is better able to manage peaks of work and their impact on waiting times.

Immigration: Bail

Richard Fuller: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people were subject to immigration bail conditions in the latest period for which figures are available.

Jonathan Djanogly: For the period 1 April to 30 September 2010 the Immigration and Asylum Chamber processed 5,374 bail applications; of these, 1,001 were granted.

National Offender Management System

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the aims and objectives are of the prison industries department of the National Offender Management System.

Crispin Blunt: The Prison Industries unit within the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) headquarters provides overall management and production planning to ensure all prison industries are effective and efficient in supplying goods and services to both the internal Government market (within NOMS and increasingly the wider MoJ and other Government Departments) and external customers, while maximising the number and length of time prisoners are employed and, improving prisoners employment and resettlement prospects. The unit also works with a range of employers who are, or who are looking to, bring work and training into prisons.

National Offender Management System

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many staff worked in the prison industries department of the National Offender Management System in the latest period for which figures are available.

Crispin Blunt: The Prison Industries unit within the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) headquarters currently employs 54 FTE staff (including vacancies). These staff cover a wide range of tasks including responsibility for production across a wide range of industries; prison laundries; commercial contracts and partnerships; asset replacement; engagement with employees as well as land based activities.

Non-Molestation Orders

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how many people in England and Wales breached an injunction made under Section 3 of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 in each year from 1998 to 2010; and how many such people who received a summary conviction were given a  (a) term of imprisonment,  (b) fine and  (c) term of imprisonment and fine;
	(2)  how many people in England and Wales were convicted under Section 4 of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 for offences of putting people in fear of violence in each year since 1998.

Crispin Blunt: The number of persons found guilty at all courts and at magistrates courts for breach of an injunction under Section 3 of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 and sentenced at the magistrates court to a fine, custodial sentence, or a custodial sentence and a fine, in England and Wales, 1998 to 2009 (latest available) are presented in Table 1.
	The number of persons found guilty at all courts under section 4 of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997, in England and Wales, 1998 to 2009 (latest available) are presented in Table 2.
	Data for 2010 are planned for publication in the spring of 2011.
	
		
			  Table 1: Number of persons convicted at all courts and at magistrates courts under section 3 of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997( 1)  and sentence breakdown at magistrates courts( 2,3) 
			  Outcome  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008( 4)  2009 
			 Found guilty at all courts 14 13 22 14 23 22 18 14 15 25 47 27 
			  Of which: 
			  Magistrates court 
			 Found guilty 11 11 18 12 20 21 15 11 11 25 44 22 
			 Sentenced 11 10 17 12 20 21 15 9 8 23 37 19 
			 Immediate custody 3 3 4 1 2 2 6 4 3 4 6 3 
			 Fine 1 6 7 8 8 10 6 3 1 2 6 3 
			 Immediate custody and fine(5) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Other sentences(6) 7 1 6 3 10 9 3 2 4 17 25 13 
			 (1) The following statutes were used for the corresponding offence: Breach of the conditions of an injunction against Protection from Harassment Act 1997 (2) The figures given in the table on court proceedings relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (4) Excludes data for Cardiff magistrates court for April, July and August 2008. (5) Where immediate custody was the principal disposal and the fine was a secondary disposal. (6) Includes: Absolute/conditional discharge, Community Sentence, Suspended Sentence and Otherwise dealt with.  Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services-Ministry of Justice 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Number of persons found guilty at all courts under section 4( 1)  of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997, England and Wales, 1998  to  2009( 2,3) 
			  Offence  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008( 4)  2009 
			 Racially and Religiously aggravated putting people in fear of violence  (section 4) 522 513 574 590 639 674 717 806 875 814 839 786 
			 (1) The following statutes were used for the corresponding offence: Putting people in fear of violence Protection from Harassment Act 1997, S.4 Religiously aggravated putting people in fear of violence Protection from Harassment Act 1997, S.4, as amended by Crime and Disorder Act 1998 S.32(1)(b) & (3) Racially or religiously aggravated putting people in fear of violence Protection from Harassment Act 1997, S.4, as amended by Crime and Disorder Act 1998 S.32(1)(b) & (3) Racially aggravated putting people in fear of violence Protection from Harassment Act 1997, S.4, as amended by Crime and Disorder Act 1998 S.32(1)(b) & (4) (2) The figures given in the table on court proceedings relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (4) Excludes data for Cardiff magistrates court for April, July and August 2008.  Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services-Ministry of Justice

Prisoners

Gavin Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what proportion of prisoners released from  (a) HM Prison Featherstone and  (b) HM Young Offender Institution Brinsford had no fixed address in each of the last five years.

Crispin Blunt: Accommodation matters are managed locally, and the proportion of prisoners who leave custody with no fixed address is not routinely collected. Retrieving the requested information at Featherstone prison would necessitate a manual search of prisoner records from the last five years, and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. However Brinsford young offender institution has captured this information as set out in the following table:
	
		
			  Prisoners 
			   No fixed abode on discharge  Number of prisoners discharged 
			 2007 3 353 
			 2008 8 694 
			 2009 10 766 
			 2010 11 731

Prisoners

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  what the average length of time was that a prisoner spent in a category  (a) A,  (b) B and  (c) C prison before being transferred in the last year for which figures are available;
	(2)  what the average length of time was that prisoners spent at HM Prison  (a) Channings Wood,  (b) Coldingley,  (c) Dartmoor,  (d) Everthorpe,  (e) Featherstone,  (f) Haverigg,  (g) Lancaster Castle,  (h) Maidstone,  (i) Risley,  (j) Verne,  (k) Wayland and  (l) Wellingborough before being transferred in the last year for which figures are available.

Crispin Blunt: In the management of the prison population the aim is to hold prisoners in establishments that provide the level of security required, are suitable for their gender, age and legal status, provide special facilities appropriate to prisoner needs and are near to their homes or the courts dealing with their cases.
	Prisoners are moved from one prison to another as part of their sentence plan, following re-categorisation, where requested or where there is an operational need to do so.
	Data are not held centrally on the average length of time a prisoner spends in a prison before a move to another prison.
	This information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost as it would involve a manual trawl through the individual records of every prisoner.

Prisoners

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many hours of purposeful activity per prisoner per week were delivered at HM Prison  (a) Channings Wood,  (b) Coldingley,  (c) Dartmoor,  (d) Everthorpe,  (e) Featherstone,  (f) Haverigg,  (g) Lancaster Castle,  (h) Maidstone,  (i) Risley,  (j) Verne,  (k) Wayland and  (l) Wellingborough in the latest period for which figures are available.

Crispin Blunt: The latest published figures for purposeful activity per prisoner per week in prison establishments in England and Wales relate to 2008-09 and are available on the HM Prison Service website:
	http://www.hmprisonservice.gov.uk/assets/documents/10004A13purposeful_activity_establishments_feb_2010.pdf
	The published figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.
	Establishment-level data on purposeful activity for 2009-10 are due to be published in March.

Re-offenders: Drugs

Richard Fuller: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the  (a) absolute number and  (b) percentage of offenders who reoffended within one year of sentencing was in the last year for which figures are available; and what the rate of reoffending was for those who had received drug rehabilitation while serving (i) a custodial and (ii) any other sentence.

Crispin Blunt: The latest re-conviction data are based on offences committed within one year of an offender being discharged from custody or commencing a court order under probation supervision in the first quarter of the year.
	Of offenders used to measure re-conviction rates in 2008, the most recent year for which data are available, 21,541 were re-convicted within 12 months. This represented 40.1% of offenders.
	Of offenders whose community penalty included a drug rehabilitation requirement in 2008, 68.5% were re-convicted within 12 months.
	Re-conviction data for custodial offenders who received drug rehabilitation can be obtained only at disproportionate cost. Therefore re-conviction rates are not available for these offenders.
	Further information on adult re-conviction is available at:
	http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/reoffendingofadults.htm

Young Offenders

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  what his policy is on placing offenders aged 18 to 20 years within the general adult prison estate; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  how many and what proportion of 18 to 20 year olds sentenced to detention in a young offender institution have been placed in a prison in each of the last three years for which information is available;
	(3)  how many and what proportion of 18 to 20 year old offenders in prison in January 2010 were serving sentences within the general adult prison population;
	(4)  what his policy is on the sentence of detention in a young offender institution; and what plans he has to bring into force section 61 of the Criminal Justice and Court Services Act 2000;
	(5)  what the average  (a) capacity and  (b) occupancy rate was of each young offender institution holding 18 to 20 year old offenders in each of the last three years.

Crispin Blunt: Young adults sentenced to detention in a young offender institution (DYOI) are detained in young offender institutions (YOIs) as required by section 98 of the Powers of the Criminal Courts (Sentencing) Act 2000. These are normally self-contained but in some instances are situated within an adult prison with which they share the majority of their facilities. Whatever the location, young adults detained in YOIs have separate sleeping accommodation and are always managed in accordance with the YOI rules.
	Section 61 of the Criminal Justice and Court Services Act 2000 is currently being considered in the context of the reform of sentencing and penalties.
	It is not possible to provide the information requested in the final three of the hon. Member's questions precisely in the format requested. Information is therefore provided on the basis of the predominant function of each establishment. Consequently, where a young adult is shown as being located in a prison whose predominant function is to hold adult prisoners, this will frequently be in a self-contained young adult unit.
	Table 1 shows the number and proportion of 18 to 20-year-olds under immediate custodial sentence that were received into an establishment whose predominant function was to hold adult prisoners in England and Wales in 2007-09.
	Table 2 shows the number and proportion of 18 to 20-year-olds under immediate custodial sentence that were located in establishments whose predominant function was to hold adult prisoners in England and Wales as at the last day of January 2011 (I have assumed that the hon. Member means January 2011 rather than January 2010).
	Table 3 shows the occupancy rate of establishments whose predominant function was a young offender institution (excluding those YOIs where places are commissioned exclusively by the Youth Justice Board) in England and Wales on the last day of June 2008, 2009 and 2010.
	
		
			  Table 1: Number and percentage of 18 to 20-year-olds received into a prison (as determined by predominant function) 
			   Number  Percentage 
			 2007 6,454 47 
			 2008 6,873 49 
			 2009 6,434 47 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Number and percentage of 18 - 20 year olds located in a prison (as determined by predominant function) 
			   Number  Percentage 
			 2011 1,749 29 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3 
			   Population in YOIs( 1)  Capacity in YOIs( 1)  Occupancy rate (percentage) 
			 2008 6,722 7,108 95 
			 2009 6,879 7,533 91 
			 2010 6,712 7,454 90 
			 (1) As determined by predominant function and not including YOIs exclusively used by the YJB.

CABINET OFFICE

Average Earnings: Peterborough

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what estimate has been made of the average weekly salary of those in employment in the Peterborough city council area in each year since 2001.

Nick Hurd: holding answer 11 February 2011
	The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated February 2011:
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking what estimate has been made of the average weekly salary of those in employment in the Peterborough City Council area in each year since 2001. (39538)
	Average levels of earnings are estimated from the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE), and are provided for all employees on adult rates of pay whose pay for the survey period was not affected by absence. The ASHE, carried out in April each year, is the most comprehensive source of earnings information in the United Kingdom.
	I attach a table showing the median gross weekly earnings for all, full-time and part-time employees working in Peterborough unitary authority for the years 2001 to 2010.
	
		
			  Median gross weekly earnings for all, full-time and part-time employee jobs( 1)  Peterborough Unitary Authority 2001 - 10 
			  £ 
			   Full-time employees  Part-time employees  All employees 
			 2001 353 **108 306 
			 2002 377 **105 327 
			 2003 388 **120 341 
			 2004(2) 406 **130 364 
			 2004(3) 394 **134 357 
			 2005 402 *141 363 
			 2006(4) 427 **135 383 
			 2006(5) 423 **135 380 
			 2007 442 **147 400 
			 2008 452 *160 385 
			 2009 468 *164 401 
			 2010 487 *164 407 
			 (1) Employees on adult rates whose pay for the survey pay-period was not affected by absence. (2) 2004 results excluding supplementary survey for comparison with 2003. (3) 2004 results including supplementary surveys designed to improve coverage of the survey. For more information see National Statistics website at: www.statistics.gov.uk (4) 2006 results with methodology consistent with 2005. (5) 2006 results with methodology consistent with 2007.  Guide to quality: The Coefficient of Variation (CV) indicates the quality of a figure, the smaller the CV value the higher the quality. The true value is likely to lie within +/- twice the CV - for example, for an average of 200 with a CV of 5%, we would expect the population average to be within the range 180 to 220.  Key: CV <= 5% * CV >5% and <=10% ** CV >10% and <20%  Source: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE), Office for National Statistics.

Cabinet Committees: EU Law

Priti Patel: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how Government Departments with responsibility for transposing  (a) EU directives and ( b) other EU legislation into UK law have been represented at the European Affairs Committee of the Cabinet; and if he will make a statement.

Francis Maude: The membership of the European Affairs Committee can be found on the Cabinet Office website, at the following address:
	http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/sites/default/files/resources/cabinet-committees-system.pdf

Carbon Emissions

Simon Hughes: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what assessment he has made of the contribution of real time energy monitoring to achieving the Government's objective to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by 10 per cent. year-on-year.

Francis Maude: The Government have committed to reduce carbon emissions from its office estate by 10% by May 2011. It is too early to determine the contribution of real time energy monitoring to achieving this commitment.
	Progress is published monthly and is publically available at:
	http://data.gov.uk/departmental-performance-co%E2%82%82-emissions-reduction-date

Departmental Pay

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the salary is of the lowest paid member of staff working at  (a) 10 Downing street and  (b) Chequers.

Francis Maude: All staff working in No. 10 are paid on Cabinet Office pay bands, details of which can be found on the Cabinet Office website:
	http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/sites/default/files/resources/Cabinet-Office_0.pdf
	The Chequers estate does not employ any Cabinet Office staff.

Departmental Procurement

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office whether all new contracts his Department has tendered over £10,000 have been published with associated tender documents on the Contracts Finder website since its inception.

Francis Maude: The Cabinet Office has published all relevant contract and tender documents within scope of the effective dates that have been authorised for publication.

Departmental Public Expenditure

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much Barnett consequential funding his Department has provided to each devolved administration in  (a) 2010-11 to date and  (b) each of the last three years; and with which programmes such funding was associated.

Francis Maude: In the 2010 spending review changes in the DEL budgets of the devolved Administrations were determined by the Barnett formula in the normal way. The settlements for the years 2011-12 to 2014-15 were published in table 2.22 of the 2010 spending review document (Cm 7942).
	Barnett consequentials relating to each of the devolved Administrations for the years 2008-09 to 2010-11 are published as part of the Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses (PESA) Supplementary Material on the Treasury's website under the heading "House of Lords Select Committee on the Barnett Formula" see
	http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/pespub_pesa10.htm
	Updated tables taking account of adjustments since the publication of the 2010 edition of PESA will be published alongside the next edition of PESA later this year.
	Information on the block grants paid by the territorial offices to the devolved Administrations is published alongside the main and supplementary estimates.

Employment

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many and what proportion of  (a) men and  (b) women are employed in (i) full-time and (ii) part-time jobs in (A) each region, (B) Scotland, (C) Wales and (D) Northern Ireland.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated February 2011:
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking how many and what proportion of (a) men and (b) women are employed in (i) full-time and (ii) part-time jobs in (A) each region, (B) Scotland, (C) Wales and (D) Northern Ireland. 40157.
	The information requested is shown in the tables. The estimates are derived from the Annual Population Survey (APS) for the period July 2009 to June 2010. As with any sample survey, estimates from the APS are subject to a margin of uncertainty.
	
		
			  Employment, full-time and part-time by region 12 months ending June 2010, United Kingdom, not seasonally adjusted 
			  Employment level 
			  Thousand 
			   Male  Female  Total 
			   Full time  Part time  Full time  Part time  Full time  Part time 
			 North East 521 69 308 230 829 300 
			 North West 1,433 205 847 596 2,280 801 
			 Yorkshire 1,104 164 625 498 1,729 662 
			 East Midlands 1,003 131 546 435 1,549 566 
			 West Midlands 1,132 155 632 488 1,764 644 
			 East 1,334 161 696 573 2,030 734 
			 London 1,775 277 1,077 589 2,852 866 
			 South East 1,922 272 1,026 892 2,947 1,165 
			 South West 1,130 193 603 569 1,732 762 
			 Wales 588 89 348 273 935 362 
			 Scotland 1,126 147 675 510 1,802 657 
			 Northern Ireland 366 44 216 136 582 180 
			 UK 13,434 1,907 7,599 5,789 21,031 7,699 
		
	
	
		
			  Percentage employed of the population 
			  Percentage 
			   Male  Female  Total 
			   Full time  Part time  Full time  Part time  Full time  Part time 
			 North East 51.2 6.8 28.5 21.3 39.5 14.3 
			 North West 53.2 7.6 30.0 21.1 41.3 14.5 
			 Yorkshire 53.7 8.0 29.0 23.1 41.1 15.7 
			 East Midlands 56.5 7.4 29.9 23.8 43.0 15.7 
			 West Midlands 53.5 7.3 28.6 22.1 40.8 14.9 
			 East 59.0 7.1 29.6 24.3 44.0 15.9 
			 London 57.8 9.0 34.0 18.6 45.7 13.9 
			 South East 58.7 8.3 29.6 25.7 43.7 17.3 
			 South West 54.7 9.3 27.7 26.1 40.8 18.0 
			 Wales 50.1 7.6 27.9 21.9 38.6 15.0 
			 Scotland 55.6 7.3 30.4 22.9 42.4 15.5 
			 Northern Ireland 54.3 6.5 30.2 19.0 41.9 13.0 
			 UK 55.5 7.9 29.9 22.8 42.4 15.5 
			  Source: Annual Population Survey (APS)

Energy Efficiency Competition

Simon Hughes: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office whether he has plans to extend the Government department headquarters energy efficiency competition to other government-owned buildings.

Francis Maude: There are no plans to hold another competition but the 18 Government headquarter buildings continue to publish their energy data online and in real time. These buildings are also included in the scope of the Government's commitment to reduce carbon emissions by 10% by May 2011.
	The Energy data are publically available and can be viewed at:
	http://data.gov.uk/departmental-performance-co%E2%82%82-emissions-reduction-date

Energy Efficiency Competition

Simon Hughes: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the interdepartmental headquarters energy efficiency competition in reducing energy use by central Government Departments; and whether he plans to continue the scheme.

Francis Maude: The energy consumption in the 18 Government headquarter buildings over the period of the competition ranged from a 22% saving to a 14% increase. The real time energy performance data is published on data.gov.uk.
	http://data.gov.uk/departmental-performance-co%E2%82%82-emissions-reduction-date

Financial Services

John Mann: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what recent estimate he has made of the proportion of total value-added in 2009 attributable to the financial sector.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated February 2011:
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking what proportion of total value-added in 2009 was attributable to the financial sector.
	The proportion of total value added in 2009 in respect of the financial sector was 7.1%.

Marriage: Females

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what proportion of women aged 56 are married.

Nick Hurd: holding answer 11 February 2011
	 The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated February 2011:
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your question asking what proportion of women aged 56 are married (39511).
	Of the estimated 320,300 women aged 56 in England and Wales in 2009, an estimated 69 per cent were married. 2009 is the latest year for which population estimates are available.
	Of the estimated 32,300 women aged 56 in Scotland in 2008, an estimated 71 per cent were married. 2008 is the latest year for which population estimates by marital status for Scotland are available.

Official Residences: Costs

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what recent estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of residences used by Ministers.

Francis Maude: The information requested is not held centrally. Cost of official residences are a matter for the occupying Minister's Department.

Older Workers

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the employment rate for 30 year old  (a) women and  (b) men was in 1984.

Nick Hurd: holding answer 11 February 2011
	The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated February 2011:
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking what the employment rate for 30 year old (a) women and (b) men was in 1984. 40181
	For the spring quarter (March to May) of 1984 the estimated employment rate for women aged 30 was 52 per cent and the employment rate for men aged 30 was 85 per cent. These estimates are derived from the Labour Force Survey (LFS) and are not seasonally adjusted.

Older Workers: Average Earnings

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what estimate he has made of the average earnings of  (a) women and  (b) men aged (i) 50, (ii) 55 and (iii) 60.

Nick Hurd: holding answer 11 February 2011
	The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated February 2011:
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking what estimate has been made of the average earnings of (a) women and (b) men aged (i) 50, (ii) 55 and (iii) 60. (40179)
	Average levels of earnings are estimated from the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE), and are provided for all employees on adult rates of pay whose pay for the survey period was not affected by absence. The ASHE, carried out in April each year, is the most comprehensive source of earnings information in the United Kingdom.
	I attach a table showing the median gross weekly earnings in 2010 for all, full-time and part-time male and female employees aged (i) 50, (ii) 55 and (iii) 60.
	
		
			  Median gross weekly earnings-for all, full-time and part-time male and female employees jobs( 1)  aged (i) 50, (ii) 55 and (iii) 60: April 2010 
			  £ 
			  Age  All male  All female  Full-time male  Full-time female  Part-time male  Part-time female 
			 50 575.1 337.1 600.8 451.0 **178.4 180.8 
			 55 556.7 325.8 580.6 444.5 **185.0 174.2 
			 60 476.3 272.2 517.5 417.8 *198.6 167.0 
			 (1) Employees on adult rates whose pay for the survey pay-period was not affected by absence.  Guide to quality: The Coefficient of Variation (CV) indicates the quality of a figure, the smaller the CV value the higher the quality. The true value is likely to lie within +/- twice the CV-for example, for an average of 200 with a CV of 5%, we would expect the population average to be within the range 180 to 220.  Key: CV <= 5% * CV >5% and <= 10% ** CV >10% and <= 20%  Source: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE), Office for National Statistics

Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme

Angela Eagle: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what assumptions he has made of the dropout rate from the Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme attributable to  (a) potential increases in contributions and  (b) its indexation against the consumer prices index; what assessment he has made of the effect of the dropout rate on the future viability of this fund; and if he will make a statement.

Francis Maude: The Office for Budget Responsibility has estimated that some additional members, amounting to 1% of the value of the pay bill, would opt-out of all the public service schemes as a result of the increase in pension contributions.
	Further consideration of the effects of this policy on the opt-out rate will be made as part of the process of determining the distribution of increases in contributions across members of the Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme. We are engaging with employee representatives on the principles to apply across public service schemes and wish to implement change in a way which minimises increases in opt-out rates. The Government have already committed to implementing contribution increases in a progressive way so that higher earners pay higher rates than lower earners. We expect also to take into account that the indexation changes are likely to impact more on members of the whole career scheme, nuvos, than on members of the final salary schemes.
	No assessment has been made of the number of additional members that might opt-out as a result of the change in indexation.

Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme

Angela Eagle: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the pension entitlement will be of a member of the Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme who retires after 30 years' full-time service on a salary of  (a) £10,000,  (b) £15,000,  (c) £20,000,  (d) £25,000,  (e) £30,000,  (f) £40,000 and  (e) £50,000 if the pension is uprated in line with (i) the retail prices index and (ii) the consumer prices index.

Francis Maude: The Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme rules set out the calculation of pensions payable to members on retirement. A copy of the rules can be found in the Library of the House and also on the civil service website. The pensions of classic and premium members are based on final salary and pensions at retirement are the same regardless of the index used for uprating. nuvos members have their pensions based on their salary in each and every year of their career, and each year's pension is uprated in line with inflation. It is therefore not possible to calculate nuvos pensions solely on the basis of salary at retirement.

Public Houses

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to the answer of 4 February 2011,  Official Report, column 979W, how many  (a) public houses and  (b) clubs closed in each (i) region, (ii) local authority area and (iii) constituency in each year since 2002.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated February 2011:
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking how many (a) public houses and (b) clubs closed in each (i) region, (ii) local authority area and (iii) constituency in each year since 2002.
	Annual statistics on the number of enterprise deaths are available from 2002 onwards in the ONS release on Business Demography at:
	www.statistics.gov.uk
	However, information by parliamentary constituency is only available from 2005 onwards. The latest statistics on the number of enterprise deaths for licensed clubs and public houses/bars have been provided in the tables. Table 1 gives information by country, region, county and county district. Table 2 gives information by parliamentary constituency.
	A copy of the tables has been placed in the House of Commons Library.

Teenage Pregnancy

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to the answer 31 January 2011,  Official Report, columns 645-46W, on teenage pregnancy, if he will publish rates of live births to mothers aged over 14 and under 18 years in each  (a) local authority area and  (b) primary care trust area in each year since 2001.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated February 2011:
	.
	(31 January 2011, Official Report, columns 645-6W, on teenage pregnancy).
	A copy of the tables has been placed in the House of Commons library.
	Information on live births is routinely published by different characteristics of birth and is available at:
	http://www.statistics.gov.uk/statbase/Product.asp?vlnk=14408

HEALTH

Animal Feed: Genetically Modified Organisms

William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his policy is on the entry of animal feed containing genetically modified organisms into the food chain.

Anne Milton: The assessment and marketing of genetically modified (GM) varieties for use in animal feed is harmonised at European Union level by Regulation (EC) 1829/2003, which requires all materials to undergo a pre-market evaluation prior to a decision on their authorisation. The evaluation is carried out by the European Food Safety Authority and covers human and animal health, environmental risks and nutrition.
	Government policy is that all GM applications should be assessed case-by-case on the basis of the science and that consumers should be able to exercise a choice on the basis of clear labelling and the provision of relevant information. However, there is no requirement to label animal products for human consumption-meat, milk and eggs-because these do not themselves contain GM organisms or GM-derived material.

Aspartame

Andrew Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will place in the Library a copy of the protocols relating to the research study commissioned by the Food Standards Agency into reports of alleged anecdotal complaints about the effects of aspartame.

Anne Milton: Aspartame is approved across the European Union for use as a sweetener in food. Its safety has been reviewed on several occasions by independent expert scientific committees in the United Kingdom, the EU and internationally. The most recent opinion from the European Food Safety Authority, updated in 2009, concluded that aspartame was safe at current levels of consumption.
	There are anecdotal reports of adverse effects associated with aspartame consumption, but these have not been reliably reproduced in controlled investigations. The Food Standards Agency has commissioned research to establish whether there is a small group of consumers that are particularly sensitive to this sweetener but who have not previously been identified.
	A copy of the protocol has been placed in the Library.

Asthma: Health Services

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will take steps to encourage GPs to follow British Guideline on the Management of Asthma recommendations on review the treatment of asthma patients on higher dose steroids every three months; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Burstow: The British Guideline on the Management of Asthma, developed by Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN), is recognised by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) and is referenced in the general practice quality and outcomes framework indicators for asthma. As both SIGN and NICE guidelines are accredited sources of evidence, we expect national health service organisations to take them into account in treating patients and commissioning services.
	On the advice of the National Quality Board, the Department has referred asthma to NICE for the development of a Quality Standard to ensure high quality care across the whole asthma care pathway.

Cancer: Drugs

Penny Mordaunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average time taken for a decision to be made on an application for funding from the Interim Cancer Drugs Fund was in each strategic health authority in the latest period for which figures are available.

Simon Burns: This information is not available centrally.
	In July 2010 the NHS Medical Director issued guidance to strategic health authorities which makes clear that arrangements for the distribution of the £50 million of additional cancer drugs funding made available in this financial year should support timely decision-making, bearing in mind the 31-day cancer treatment standard. A copy of the guidance has been placed in the Library.

Cancer: Drugs

Penny Mordaunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health in what ways the experiences of operating the Interim Cancer Drugs Fund has informed the planned structure of the permanent fund.

Simon Burns: We held a three-month public consultation on our proposals for the Cancer Drugs Fund which closed on 19 January and responses to the consultation are currently being considered.
	The implementation of the Cancer Drugs Fund from April will be informed by the consultation responses, and relevant experience from the operation of the interim cancer drugs funding arrangements.

Cancer: Mortality Rates

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the mortality rate from  (a) cancer and  (b) heart attacks was in each year since 1995.

Nick Hurd: I have been asked to reply.
	The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated February 2011:
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking what the annual mortality rate from (a) cancer and (b) heart attacks was for each year since 1995. (40872)
	The table attached provides age-standardised mortality rates per 100,000 population, where the underlying cause of death was (a) cancer and (b) heart attacks, in England and Wales, for 1995 to 2009 (the latest year available).
	In England and Wales, causes of death are coded using the International Classification of Diseases (ICD). The introduction of ICD-10 in 2001 had a significant effect on mortality rates for some diseases, causing a discontinuity in mortality trends for these causes of death. However ONS practice is not to adjust the historical numbers of deaths shown in PQ answers. More information on this issue can be found at:
	www.statistics.gov.uk/icd10mortality
	For all cancers (ICD-10 codes C00-C97) the introduction of ICD-10 caused an increase of 2.5% for males and 2.2% for females. An article specifically examining the changes for cancer trends was published in "Health Statistics Quarterly 23"(1). This article also presents comparability ratios (the ratio of the number of deaths coded to a cause in ICD-10 to the number coded to the equivalent cause in ICD-9) for the most common cancer sites. A copy of this report can be downloaded at:
	www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/Product.asp?vlnk=6725
	For acute myocardial infarction (heart attacks) (ICD-10 codes I21-I22) the introduction of ICD-10 caused a decrease of 6.3% for males and 7.4% for females. An article specifically examining the changes for circulatory disease trends was published in "Health Statistics Quarterly 22"(2). This article also presents comparability ratios (the ratio of the number of deaths coded to a cause in ICD-10 to the number coded to the equivalent cause in ICD-9) for specific types of circulatory disease. A copy of this report can be downloaded at:
	www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/Product.asp?vlnk=15342
	(1) Brock A, Griffiths C, and Rooney C (2004) 'The effect of the introduction of ICD-10 on cancer mortality trends in England and Wales.' Health Statistics Quarterly 23, 7-17
	(2) Griffiths C, Brock A and Rooney C (2004) 'The effect of the introduction of ICD-10 on trends in mortality from circulatory disease in England and Wales.' Health Statistics Quarterly 22, 14-20
	The number of deaths registered in England and Wales each year by sex, age and cause are published annually on the National Statistics website at:
	http://www.statistics.gov.uk/statbase/Product.asp?vlnk=15096
	
		
			  Table 1. Age-standardised mortality rates( 1)  from (a) cancer and (b) heart attack,( 2)  in England and Wales,( 3)  1995-2009( 4) 
			  Rate per 100,000 population 
			   (a) Cancer  (b) Heart attack 
			 1995 204 98 
			 1996 202 92 
			 1997 196 84 
			 1998 196 79 
			 1999 190 72 
			 2000 187 65 
			 2001 189 59 
			 2002 188 57 
			 2003 184 53 
			 2004 180 47 
			 2005 178 43 
			 2006 177 39 
			 2007 175 36 
			 2008 173 33 
			 2009 170 30 
			 (1) Age-standardised mortality rates per 100,000 population, standardised to the European Standard Population. Age-standardised rates are used to allow comparison between populations which may contain different proportions of people of different ages. (2) Cause of death was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9) codes 140-209 (malignant neoplasms) and 410 (acute myocardial infarction) for the years 1995-2000; and Tenth Revision (ICD-10) codes C00-C97 (malignant neoplasms) and I21-I22 (acute and subsequent myocardial infarction) for 2001 onwards. Deaths were selected where these conditions were the underlying cause of death. The introduction of ICD-10 in 2001 means that the numbers of deaths from these causes before 2001 are not completely comparable with later years. (3) Figures for England and Wales include deaths of non residents. (4 )Data are for deaths registered in each calendar year.

Cataracts: Surgery

Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he has made an estimate of the proportion of cataract surgery treatment that was performed by the private sector in each primary care trust area in the last year for which figures are available.

Simon Burns: The table provided by the Information Centre for Health and Social Care shows the number of finished consultant episodes (FCEs) for cataract surgery performed by the private sector in each primary care trust (PCT) for 2009-10.
	The cataract surgery treatment performed by the private sector in each primary care trust area is defined as treatment provided within the independent sector which has been undertaken on behalf of the national health service. This analysis does not include private health care provided for private patients.
	
		
			  Count and proportion of finished consultant episodes(FCEs)( 1)  with a main or secondary procedure( 2)  of cataract surgery treatment( 3)  within each PCT of main provider and those performed by the private sector in each PCT of main provider; 2009-10 
			  Activity in English NHS hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector 
			  PCT of main provider  Total episodes in each PCT of main provider  Total episodes performed by the private sector in each PCT of main provider  Proportion of episodes performed by the private sector (percentage) 
			 Total 346,969 16,370 5 
			 
			 Ashton, Leigh and Wigan PCT 1,908 0 0 
			 Barnet PCT 716 11 2 
			 Barnsley PCT 1 0 0 
			 Bath and North East Somerset PCT 1,755 0 0 
			 Bedfordshire PCT 1,819 0 0 
			 Berkshire East PCT 12 12 100 
			 Berkshire West PCT 4,843 10 0 
			 Bexley Care Trust 5,932 0 0 
			 Birmingham East and North PCT 3,486 0 0 
			 Blackburn with Darwen PCT 3,233 0 0 
			 Blackpool PCT 2,855 4 0 
			 Bolton PCT 2,784 0 0 
			 Bournemouth and Poole Teaching PCT 4,779 303 6 
			 Bradford and Airedale Teaching PCT 3,257 493 15 
			 Brent Teaching PCT 1,005 0 0 
			 Brighton and Hove City PCT 3,206 0 0 
			 Bristol PCT 6,161 0 0 
			 Buckinghamshire PCT 3,034 0 0 
			 Cambridgeshire PCT 4,109 0 0 
			 Camden PCT 4,128 0 0 
			 Central and Eastern Cheshire PCT 2,740 86 3 
			 Central Lancashire PCT 2,541 649 26 
			 Cornwall and Isles of Scilly PCT 3,945 954 24 
			 Coventry Teaching PCT 2,824 0 0 
			 Croydon PCT 1,763 97 6 
			 Cumbria Teaching PCT 4,893 0 0 
			 Darlington PCT 2,475 0 0 
			 Derby City PCT 4,058 0 0 
			 Derbyshire County PCT 2,518 6 0 
			 Devon PCT 4,687 0 0 
			 Doncaster PCT 3,584 198 6 
			 Dorset PCT 1,552 79 5 
			 Dudley PCT 1,707 0 0 
			 East and North Hertfordshire PCT 2,626 617 23 
			 Eastern and Coastal Kent PCT 4,327 33 1 
			 East Lancashire Teaching PCT 12 12 100 
			 Enfield PCT 1,344 0 0 
			 Gateshead PCT 2 2 100 
			 Gloucestershire PCT 4,487 2 0 
			 Great Yarmouth and Waveney PCT 1,697 0 0 
			 Halton and St Helens PCT 16 16 100 
			 Hampshire PCT 3,935 12 0 
			 Hastings and Rother PCT 3,094 0 0 
			 Havering PCT 1,545 0 0 
			 Heart of Birmingham Teaching PCT 4,035 0 0 
			 Herefordshire PCT 1,637 0 0 
			 Heywood, Middleton and Rochdale PCT 231 231 100 
			 Hillingdon PCT 1,235 0 0 
			 Hull Teaching PCT 3,242 0 0 
			 Isle of Wight NHS PCT 909 0 0 
			 Islington PCT 14,430 0 0 
			 Kensington and Chelsea PCT 552 0 0 
			 Kingston PCT 2,202 0 0 
			 Kirklees PCT 2,266 0 0 
			 Knowsley PCT 1,862 0 0 
			 Lambeth PCT 2,530 0 0 
			 Leeds PCT 4,754 0 0 
			 Leicester City PCT 2,929 0 0 
			 Leicestershire County and Rutland PCT 2,175 12 1 
			 Lincolnshire Teaching PCT 4,931 1,245 25 
			 Liverpool PCT 5,073 0 0 
			 Luton PCT 1,822 0 0 
			 Manchester PCT 9,202 0 0 
			 Middlesbrough PCT 4,066 0 0 
			 Mid Essex PCT 2,022 106 5 
			 Milton Keynes PCT 1,048 366 35 
			 Newcastle PCT 8,160 0 0 
			 Norfolk PCT 7,203 2 0 
			 Northamptonshire Teaching PCT 4,807 142 3 
			 North East Essex PCT 6,556 4,549 69 
			 North East Lincolnshire Care Trust Plus 2,633 0 0 
			 North Yorkshire and York PCT 5,266 0 0 
			 Nottingham City PCT 4,338 0 0 
			 Nottinghamshire County Teaching PCT 2,336 0 0 
			 Oxfordshire PCT 2,723 0 0 
			 Peterborough PCT 1,652 26 2 
			 Plymouth Teaching PCT 2,933 0 0 
			 Portsmouth City Teaching PCT 3,145 0 0 
			 Redbridge PCT 355 355 100 
			 Rotherham PCT 3,811 0 0 
			 Salford PCT 4 4 100 
			 Sefton PCT 1,958 0 0 
			 Sheffield PCT 4,180 34 1 
			 Shropshire County PCT 3,350 0 0 
			 Somerset PCT 5,204 1,544 30 
			 Southampton City PCT 2,694 42 2 
			 South Birmingham PCT 1,709 0 0 
			 South East Essex PCT 4,512 8 0 
			 South Gloucestershire PCT 233 233 100 
			 South Staffordshire PCT 3,950 2,970 75 
			 Southwark PCT 2,234 0 0 
			 South West Essex PCT 3 3 100 
			 Stockport PCT 1,795 0 0 
			 Stoke On Trent PCT 2,234 0 0 
			 Suffolk PCT 3,780 0 0 
			 Sunderland Teaching PCT 7,674 0 0 
			 Surrey PCT 9,691 50 1 
			 Sutton and Merton PCT 1,587 0 0 
			 Swindon PCT 1,501 52 3 
			 Torbay Care Trust 2,020 88 4 
			 Tower Hamlets PCT 485 0 0 
			 Wakefield District PCT 3,028 0 0 
			 Walsall Teaching PCT 962 0 0 
			 Waltham Forest PCT 3,085 0 0 
			 Wandsworth PCT 3 0 0 
			 Warrington PCT 2,014 46 2 
			 Warwickshire PCT 1,863 0 0 
			 Western Cheshire PCT 1,675 0 0 
			 West Essex PCT 1,263 0 0 
			 West Hertfordshire PCT 1,441 156 11 
			 West Kent PCT 3,988 62 2 
			 Westminster PCT 2,242 0 0 
			 West Sussex PCT 4,313 122 3 
			 Wiltshire PCT 1,507 300 20 
			 Wirral PCT 1,809 26 1 
			 Wolverhampton City PCT 2,656 0 0 
			 Worcestershire PCT 3,856 0 0 
			 (1) Finished Consultant Episode A finished consultant episode (FCE) is a continuous period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one health care provider. FCEs are counted against the year in which they end. Figures do not represent the number of different patients, as a person may have more than one episode of care within the same stay in hospital or in different stays in the same year. (2) Number of Episodes with a main (named) or secondary procedure The number of episodes where the procedure (or intervention) was recorded in any of the 24 (12 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and four prior to 2002-03) procedure fields in a Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) record. A record is only included once in each count, even if the procedure is recorded in more than one procedure field of the record. Note that more procedures are carried out than episodes with a main or secondary procedure. For example, patients undergoing a 'cataract operation' would tend to have at least two procedures-removal of the faulty lens and the fitting of a new one-counted in a single episode. (3) Cataract Surgery Treatment The following combination of ICD-10 and OPCS-4 codes used to identify cataract surgery treatment:  ICD-10 codes: H25.- Senile cataract H26.- Other cataract H28.0A Diabetic cataract H28.1A Cataract in other endocrine, nutritional and metabolic diseases H28.2A Cataract in other diseases classified elsewhere Q12.0 Congenital cataract  OPCS 4 codes: C71.- Extracapsular extraction of lens C72.- Intracapsular extraction of lens C73.- Incision of capsule of lens C74.- Other extraction of lens C75.- Prosthesis of lens C77.- Other operations on lens  Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), The NHS Information Centre for Health and Social Care

Clinical Trials

Frank Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether willing providers of hospital services will be required to join in medical science trials.

Simon Burns: The White Paper "Equity and Excellence: Liberating the NHS" emphasises the Government's commitment to the promotion and conduct of research as a core role of the national health service. However, NHS organisations are not currently required to participate in clinical trials or other research, and there will be no requirement for willing providers of hospital services to do so.

Dentistry

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will bring forward proposals to repeal those parts of sections 36C and D of the Dentists Act 1984 which preclude the General Dental Council from individually assessing the qualifications of UK citizens to become dental care professionals.

Simon Burns: The General Dental Council's (GDC's) practice of approving qualifications, which are awarded by recognised training institutions, for the registration of both dentists and dental care professionals (DCPs) protects the public by ensuring common standards of training and education. However, we have sympathy for DCPs who qualified some time ago and whose qualifications are no longer recognised.
	We understand that, in the past, some training institutions have put on short courses to bring DCPs up to the standards set by the GDC. We will explore with the GDC whether we might encourage training institutions to look again at developing these courses.

Eyes: Health Services

Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he has assessed the merits of  (a) reforming the structure of ophthalmic services for elderly patients and (b) introducing new eye lens technologies for cataract surgery.

Simon Burns: No such assessment has been made.
	Currently primary care trusts are able to commission eye care services as they judge them to be needed in their areas.
	The Health and Social Care Bill currently before the House sets out our proposals to devolve power and responsibility for commissioning services to local consortia of general practitioner (GP) practices, supported by the creation of an NHS Commissioning Board.
	Subject to parliamentary approval, GP consortia will be responsible for commissioning the great majority of national health service services including those for patients with cataracts. GP consortia will be responsible for managing their won commissioning budgets, and using these resources to commission services to achieve the best and most cost-efficient outcomes for patients. The NHS Commissioning Board will hold them to account for the quality of their commissioning.

General Practitioners

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  whether GP commissioning consortia will be required to become community interest companies; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  whether GP consortia may be  (a) unincorporated associations and  (b) limited companies under his proposals for NHS reform; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: Commissioning consortia established in accordance with the provisions proposed by the Health and Social Care Bill would be statutory public bodies. They will therefore not be community interest companies, unincorporated associations or limited companies.

General Practitioners

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  whether he plans to put in place measures to prevent members of GP consortia from holding financial interests in any licensed healthcare provided; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  whether he plans to put in place a mechanism to prevent members of GP commissioning consortia from awarding contracts to providers in which they have a financial interest.

Simon Burns: The Health and Social Care Bill proposes clear statutory duties on commissioners in relation to procurement and in relation to anti-competitive behaviours. A clear set of underpinning rules and guidance will be developed to apply to general practitioner (GP) consortia, so that they have the necessary support to make decisions that are fair and transparent and avoid any perceived conflicts of interest.
	In addition, the Bill also includes a requirement that each consortium's constitution sets out arrangements for decision-making and managing potential conflicts of interest.

General Practitioners: Monitor

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether GP consortia will be liable for a 10 per cent. penalty of turnover in cases where Monitor rules that they have practiced anti-competitive behaviour in favouring a particular  (a) healthcare provider and  (b) NHS Foundation Trust under his proposals for NHS reform.

Simon Burns: The Health and Social Care Bill does not give Monitor powers to impose financial penalties on commissioners of national health service services.

General Practitioners: Monitor

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has for the role of Monitor in cases where an interested party makes an accusation of a GP consortium favouring an incumbent healthcare provider under his proposals for NHS reform.

Simon Burns: The Health and Social Care Bill would provide concurrent powers for Monitor, alongside the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), to apply the Competition Act 1998 within the health care sector. Monitor would be obliged to consider any complaint from an interested party alleging an infringement under the Act and would have concurrent powers under the Act to investigate and take enforcement action. Further guidance on prohibitions of anti-competitive behaviour and investigations and enforcement action under the Competition Act 1998 is published on the OFT website at:
	www.oft.gov.uk/about-the-oft/legal-powers/legal/competition-act-1998/
	In addition, the Health and Social Care Bill would provide that the Secretary of State may make regulations, subject to parliamentary resolution, to impose requirements on commissioners of national health service services in relation to procurement, patient choice or competition (see clause 63). Such regulations may also confer power for Monitor to investigate and take certain enforcement action regarding a failure by a commissioner to comply with a requirement imposed by the regulations (see clause 64).

General Practitioners: Pay

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  whether GP consortia will be permitted to pay bonuses to their members from NHS commissioning board budgets; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  if he will require that  (a) salaries and  (b) bonuses of GP consortia staff are published; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: The Health and Social Care Bill proposes that each commissioning consortium is to be a body corporate which may appoint employees on such terms and conditions (including remuneration) as they determine. 'Liberating the NHS: legislative framework and next Steps' set out that consortia will be required to make public their remuneration arrangements, and the Bill contains provision for this.
	With the exception of the management allowance, which is to cover management costs, the intention is that a consortium's commissioning budget must be used exclusively for the commissioning of patient care. It would be distinct from the income that general practitioner practices earn under their primary medical care contract, from which they both meet their practice expenses, and derive their personal income.

Health Services: Travellers

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what mechanism he plans to put in place under his proposals for NHS reform to provide access to  (a) healthcare and  (b) hospital care for (i) a homeless person and (ii) a member of a Traveller community not registered with a GP practice.

Simon Burns: Commissioning consortia will be responsible for the provision of health care to homeless and unregistered populations in their geographical area. As is currently the situation with primary care trusts, in future, subject to passage of the Health and Social Bill, a general practitioner (GP) consortium will be the responsible commissioner for any patients registered with its constituent practices, even if they live elsewhere. A wider choice of GP practice will mean that some consortia patients may live beyond their boundaries.
	Access to health care for hard to reach groups is a key priority for the Department. Inclusion Health is a programme that focuses specifically on improving the health outcomes of vulnerable groups, including the homeless, and Gypsies and Travellers. Inclusion Health seeks to drive improvements through reform and clinical leadership, and strives to ensure policies and programmes across health and the wider determinants of health consider the needs of those with complex problems.

Health Visitors

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of new health visitors which will be allocated to each local authority.

Anne Milton: Health visitors will not be allocated to local authorities.
	The 'Health Visitor Implementation Plan 2011-15' was accompanied by a national health Service management letter from the Deputy Chief Executive of the NHS and the Chief Nursing Officer of England to all chief executives at strategic health authorities (SHAs) in England and all chief executives of primary care trusts in England. The letter provides indicative trajectories of workforce growth for 2011-12 at a regional, SHA level. It is for SHAs to decide how to plan the growth in their area.
	Copies of the implementation plan and management letter have been placed in the Library.

Health Visitors: Training

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health by what date he estimates his Department will complete the recruitment and training of 4,200 new health visitors.

Anne Milton: On 8 February 2011, the Department published the "Health Visitor Implementation Plan 2011-15-A Call to Action", a copy of which has already been placed in the Library. The plan sets out a four year programme which will create a bigger, rejuvenated work force with an extra 4,200 health visitors by 2015 and an improvement in the quality of the health visiting service for children and families.

Health Visitors: Training

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what funding he has allocated to the recruitment and training of 4,200 new health visitors.

Anne Milton: The training budget for 2011-12 has not yet been set, however funding for health visitor training will be provided from the Multi-Professional Education and Training (MPET) budget. The MPET service level agreement will ensure that sufficient investment is made in training to deliver the 4,200 commitment by 2015.

Health Visitors: Training

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of nurses who will become health visitors as part of his proposal to recruit and train 4,200 new health visitors; and whether nurses who become health visitors will be replaced.

Anne Milton: The Health Visitor Implementation Plan sets out a strategy to increase the work force through several routes. We expect that some new health visitors will come from nursing and midwifery roles. However, we will also be working to attract new recruits into direct entry programmes, to encourage former health visitors to return to practice and to improve retention in the current work force. A copy of the plan has already been placed in the Library.
	Each national health service organisation is responsible for planning the size of their nursing work force and will need to reflect health visitor expansion in these plans.

Health Visitors: Training

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he plans to revise the application criteria and training requirements for health visitors.

Anne Milton: In order to achieve the best outcomes in health visitor education for both staff and patients alike, we are working closely with the Nursing Midwifery Council and the further and higher education sectors to review the application and training requirements of educational programmes.
	The "Health Visitor Implementation Plan 2011-15, A Call to Action" sets out our intention to improve the quality of health visiting services for children and families. A copy has already been placed in the Library.

Mental Health Services

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether secure psychiatric facilities which are currently NHS trusts will become Foundation Trusts under his proposals for NHS reform.

Paul Burstow: The national health service trusts who currently host the three high secure hospitals in England have so far been eligible to apply for foundation trust status. The coalition Government have however committed to establishing statutory arrangements to be made that will enable these organisations to benefit from the independence of foundation trust status while retaining appropriate safeguards to reflect their role in the criminal justice system.

Mental Health Services

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether mental health care will fall within the commissioning responsibility of  (a) GP consortia and  (b) local authorities under his proposals for NHS reform.

Paul Burstow: Treatment of mental ill health, including Improving Access to Psychological Therapies, will fall under the commissioning responsibility of general practitioner (GP) consortia. Subject to public consultation, local authorities will take on responsibility for commissioning mental well-being promotion, anti-stigma and discrimination, and suicide and self-harm prevention public health activities. Health and well-being boards will bring together the key national health service, public health and social care leaders in each local authority area to work in partnership, and will help to ensure consistency and integration of commissioning of mental health services.

Mental Health Services: Low Incomes

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make an assessment of the ability of those on low incomes to visit patients detained under the Mental Health Act 1983; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Burstow: The ability of people on low incomes to visit patients detained in hospital under the Mental Health Act 1983 depends on the individual circumstances of the case. Under current arrangements, people in receipt of a qualifying benefit may be eligible for assistance in the form of a community care grant from the Social Fund.

Ministerial Meetings

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what meetings  (a) he,  (b) Ministers in his Department and  (c) his officials have had with representatives of Bondcare Medical Services since 12 May 2010;
	(2)  what meetings  (a) he,  (b) Ministers in his Department and  (c) his officials have had with representatives of Tribal since 12 May 2010;
	(3)  what meetings  (a) he,  (b) Ministers and  (c) his officials have had with representatives of Humana since 12 May 2010;
	(4)  what meetings  (a) he,  (b) Ministers in his Department and  (c) his officials have had with representatives of Nestor Primecare since 12 May 2010;
	(5)  what meetings  (a) he,  (b) Ministers in his Department and  (c) his officials have had with representatives of Serco since 12 May 2010;
	(6)  what meetings  (a) he,  (b) Ministers in his Department and  (c) his officials have had with representatives of United Health since 12 May 2010;
	(7)  what meetings  (a) he,  (b) Ministers in his Department and  (c) his official have had with representatives of Assura since 12 May 2010;
	(8)  what meetings  (a) he,  (b) Ministers in his Department and  (c) his officials have had with representatives of Care UK since 12 May 2010.

Simon Burns: Ministers have had the following meetings with independent sector organisations where Humana, Tribal, United Health and Care UK representatives attended. However, the Department does not maintain central records of 'officials' meetings with representatives of healthcare providers whether in the public, private or voluntary sectors.
	
		
			  Date of meeting  Ministers in attendance  Purpose of meeting 
			 13 September 2010 1. Secretary of State 2. Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Earl Howe) Meeting with the Commissioning Service Industry Group-In attendance were representatives of independent sector organisations including Tribal, Humana and United Health 
			 26 October 2010 1. Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Earl Howe) Meeting with David Worskett (Director of NHS Partners Network)-Care UK representative was also in attendance as part of the NHS Partners Network

NHS: Drugs

Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 19 January 2011,  Official Report, column 845W, how many and what proportion of drug treatment patients who have been in treatment for three years or more are resident in each primary care trust area; and how many such patients in each area are being prescribed substitute drugs.

Anne Milton: The National Drug Treatment Monitoring System does not report data for numbers of people in drug treatment by primary care trust (PCT). Data showing people who have been in drug treatment for three years or more are available by local drug partnership area, most of which share boundaries with PCTs. These have been placed in the Library.

NHS: Managers

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the salary is of the Chair of each  (a) NHS trust and  (b) Foundation trust.

Simon Burns: Levels of remuneration for national health service trust chairs have been determined centrally by the Government. On 10 March 2010, it was announced that there would be no increase to these rates for 2010-11.
	Current rates are as follows:
	 NHS Trust Chairs
	NHS Trust Band 1: £23,366
	NHS Trust Band 2: £20,896
	NHS Trust Band 3: £18,437.
	The Appointments Commission, an executive non-departmental public body manages appointments to NHS trusts on behalf of the Secretary of State for Health and publishes levels of remuneration on its website:
	https://www.appointments.org.uk/Home/Appointees/Remuneration
	Information on remuneration of NHS foundation trusts chairs is not held centrally.

NHS: Managers

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of  (a) Chairs,  (b) non-executive directors and  (c) both Chairs and non-executive directors in the NHS are women.

Simon Burns: The Appointments Commission is responsible for the appointment of chairs and non-executive directors of national health service trusts, primary care trusts (PCTs), and strategic health authorities (SHAs) on behalf of the Secretary of State for Health.
	The following table shows as at 1 February 2011, the proportion of chairs, non-executive directors and both chairs and non-executive directors in NHS trusts, PCTs, SHAs and provider PCTs who are women.
	
		
			  Percentage 
			   Female  Male  Not declared 
			 Chairs 30.43 69.57 0.00 
			 Non-executives 35.24 64.69 0.07 
			 Chairs and Non-executives 34.55 65.40 0.06 
		
	
	It does not include information relating to foundation trusts, so is not a full representation of the NHS. Foundation trust governors are responsible for their own board appointments.

NHS: Managers

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost to the public purse was of pay for Chairs and non-executive directors in the NHS in the latest period for which figures are available.

Simon Burns: This information is not collected centrally, but is included in the annual report of each organisation.

NHS: Managers

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will review the amounts paid to chairs and non-executive directors of health service boards.

Simon Burns: Rates for remuneration for chairs and non-executive directors in national health service trusts (including ambulance trusts), strategic health authorities, special health authorities and primary care trusts were determined by the Public Sector Pay Committee in 2006. They have been uplifted in line with the pay increase for senior executive staff under the Pay Framework for Very Senior Managers in Strategic and Special Health Authorities, Primary Care Trusts and Ambulance Trusts, in line with the Government's response each year to the recommendations of the Senior Salaries Review Body. In line with the coalition Government's announcement of a two-year pay freeze for public sector staff earning over £21,000, there are no plans to review the amounts further.
	NHS foundation trusts are accountable to their governors and members, including on the issue of remuneration. The remuneration rate of the chair and non-executive directors is for each NHS foundation trust to determine.

NHS: Redundancy Pay

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what requirements are placed on NHS trusts to disclose information related to special payments of  (a) £250,000 and over and  (b) under £250,000; and whether such payments which consist of a cash sum under £250,000 and pension contributions which raise the total value of the package above £250,000 are required to be reported in the same way as payments consisting of cash sums over £250,000.

Simon Burns: The Department requires national health service trusts to disclose, in their annual audited accounts the total value and number of special payment cases. This includes all cases regardless of the amount paid.
	In addition, the Department requires NHS trusts to disclose separately the value and number of any special payment of £250,000 or more and also provide a description of the payments, in their annual audited accounts.
	Where the cash sum of a payment is under £250,000 but the value is increased by a non-contractual pension contribution, which raises the total value above £250,000, the special payment must be disclosed in the same way as any special payment of £250,000 or more.

NHS: Redundancy Pay

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether each compromise or confidentiality agreement between a member of NHS staff and an employer is defined as a special severance payment subject to the guidance in Annex 4.13 of Managing Public Money.

Simon Burns: Special severance payments are paid to employees, contractors and others beyond above normal statutory or contractual requirements when leaving employment in public service whether they resign, are dismissed or reach an agreed termination of contract as defined in Annex 4.13 of Managing Public Money.
	If a compromise or confidentiality agreement meets this definition then it is appropriately scrutinised by the Department.

Organs: Donors

Simon Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people were listed on the organ donation register in  (a) Norwich South constituency,  (b) Norfolk and  (c) England in each of the last 10 years.

Anne Milton: The number of people on the organ donation register in Norwich South constituency, Norfolk and England in each of the last 10 years is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Year of registration  Norwich South  Norfolk  England 
			 <2001 11,120 95,834 5,536,092 
			 2001 2,256 17,205 988,854 
			 2002 2,030 18,957 916,977 
			 2003 1,808 12,401 732,649 
			 2004 2,033 15,947 844,250 
			 2005 2,253 15,642 907,367 
			 2006 2,428 16,882 966,884 
			 2007 2,127 14,514 839,285 
			 2008 2,394 15,555 919,340 
			 2009 2,305 15,588 864,877 
			 2010 2,336 16,119 925,140 
			 2011 99 838 50,077

Organs: Donors

Simon Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many new organs donors were registered in  (a) Norwich South constituency,  (b) Norfolk and  (c) England in each of the last 10 years.

Anne Milton: The number of new deceased organ donors registered in the Norwich South constituency, in Norfolk and in England is shown in the following tables. However, because organ donor postcodes have only been fully reported in the last three years, information has also been provided on the hospital of donation.
	
		
			  Deceased organ donors per year, based on postcode 
			  Year of registration  Norwich South  Norfolk  England  Completeness of postcode data (%) 
			 2001 - - - 0.0 
			 2002 - - 1 0.1 
			 2003 - - - 0.0 
			 2004 - - - 0.0 
			 2005 - - - 0.0 
			 2006 - - 82 13.6 
			 2007 1 4 399 63.3 
			 2008 2 17 739 99.9 
			 2009 0 13 780 99.7 
			 2010 2 17 830 99.9 
		
	
	
		
			  Deceased organ donors per year, based on donor hospital 
			  Year of registration  Norwich South  Norfolk  England 
			 2001 5 7 641 
			 2002 1 4 654 
			 2003 6 8 599 
			 2004 6 8 682 
			 2005 2 5 635 
			 2006 4 6 648 
			 2007 4 7 667 
			 2008 6 12 757 
			 2009 8 12 816 
			 2010 11 15 847

Organs: Donors

Simon Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to increase the number of people on the organ donor register.

Anne Milton: Currently over 17 million people have joined the organ donor register in the United Kingdom and there are a range of ongoing activities to promote organ donation. In autumn 2009, NHS Blood and Transplant launched a UK-wide public awareness campaign to encourage more people to join the organ donor register and to discuss their wishes in relation to organ donation with family members. NHS Blood and Transplant also work in partnerships with the national health service, commercial and third sector organisations to support local events around the country or national initiatives such as joining the register when registering with a doctor. From July 2011 we are running a pilot whereby all applicants applying for a driving licence online will be required to answer a question about organ donation. It is hoped that by ensuring applicants spend time reading the question and considering their response, a higher number of people will join the organ donor register. We will evaluate this pilot, and if it is successful in increasing the number of people on the organ donor register, we will consider rolling it out across other areas.

Osteoporosis

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to preserve bone health in men and women over the age of 50; if he will include in the public health outcomes framework an indicator relating to the incidence of fragility fractures in individuals over the age of 50; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Burstow: The national health service continues to support primary prevention and early diagnosis and treatment of osteoporosis in a number of ways, including:
	The current contract with general practitioners includes a Directed Enhanced Service for diagnosis and prevention of osteoporosis; contract negotiations for April 2011 are ongoing.
	The National institute for Health and Clinical Excellence has published clinical guidelines on, and technology appraisals of drugs for, osteoporosis.
	The NHS Clinical Knowledge Summaries (formerly PRODIGY) are a reliable source of evidence-based information and practical 'know how' about the common conditions managed in primary care. It is aimed at health care professionals working in primary and first-contact care, and provides information on osteoporosis prevention and management.
	NHS Choices provides comprehensive information for the public on all aspects of osteoporosis, and on beta thalassaemia major in which osteoporosis is a known complication.
	Guidance from the Department on Effective Interventions in Health and Social Care on Falls and Fractures includes, as one of four objectives, the prevention of frailty, promotion of bone health and reduction of accidents.
	We fund a national clinical audit of falls and bone health, delivered by the Royal College of Physicians. The audit measures the organisation of services and care provided to older people for falls prevention, bone health and fracture management. It provides national benchmarking data, using evidence based quality standards, for a variety of health care settings: acute, primary care, care homes and mental health care.
	'Healthy Lives, Healthy People: transparency in outcomes, proposals for a public health outcomes framework' was published for public consultation on 20 December 2010. The consultation closes on 31 March 2011, and the hon. Member's question will be treated as a representation. Decisions on the content of the Public Health Outcomes Framework will be made when the responses to the consultation have been analysed and considered. The consultation that closed on 9 February 2011 ('Transparency in outcomes: a framework for adult social care') included proposals for an indicator related to fragility fractures that would be shared with the NHS outcomes framework 2011-12 that was published on 20 December 2010.

Ovarian Cancer: Health Services

Sarah Wollaston: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to support effective commissioning for ovarian cancer.

Paul Burstow: The White Paper 'Equity and Excellence: Liberating the NHS' describes the Government's vision to create a more autonomous and accountable national health service. Within this new commissioning architecture, responsibility for most commissioning is devolved to local general practitioner (GP) commissioning consortia, supported and held to account by an independent NHS Commissioning Board.
	'Improving Outcomes: A Strategy for Cancer', published on 12 January, discusses how commissioners can be supported to commission cancer services, including ovarian cancer services, in the reformed NHS. A significant amount of cancer care is best commissioned for populations covering one and a half to two million and, where population size requirements mean that a single GP consortium is too small to commission a particular service, then GP consortia will wish to work collaboratively. GP consortia will be able to decide whether they wish to identify a lead consortium for commissioning more specialised cancer services or to do so through commissioning support organisations.
	In addition, health and well-being boards in every upper-tier local authority will provide a mechanism for bringing together local NHS, public health and social care commissioners. This could provide a forum for the development of cross-cutting commissioning approaches to improve cancer services.
	The Department and the National Cancer Action Team have previously provided commissioners with a range of commissioning guidance and support, such as 'the Cancer Commissioning Toolkit' and the 'Cancer Commissioning Guidance'. Going forward, this guidance will be developed to reflect what works best in supporting pathfinder GP consortia. In 2011, we will also develop a cancer commissioning support pack to enable commissioners to access in one place the key information they will need to discharge their functions effectively.

Primary Care Trusts: North East Offender Health Commissioning Unit

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish the scores given to each application to the North East Offender Health Commissioning Unit for the award of a contract to provide NHS primary care services in respect of  (a) quality,  (b) delivery,  (c) risk and  (d) price.

Paul Burstow: I refer the hon. Member to the written answer I gave him on 27 January 2011,  Official Report, column 468W. This is a local issue for North East Offender Health Commissioning Unit as responsibility for commissioning health services in publicly run prisons in England has been fully devolved to national health service primary care trusts since 2006. The information is used by County Durham PCT.

Transplant Surgery

Simon Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients were assessed as needing an organ transplant in  (a) Norwich South constituency,  (b) Norfolk and  (c) England in each of the last 10 years.

Anne Milton: The number of patients assessed as needing a transplant and added to the transplant list per year in the Norwich South constituency, in Norfolk and in England is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Year of registration  Norwich South  Norfolk  England 
			 2001 5 41 2,657 
			 2002 6 46 2,703 
			 2003 6 51 2,687 
			 2004 4 51 3,063 
			 2005 5 50 3,123 
			 2006 2 50 3,536 
			 2007 4 57 3,578 
			 2008 7 48 3,988 
			 2009 4 51 3,792 
			 2010 3 62 3,741

Transplant Surgery

Simon Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people died while waiting for an organ transplant in  (a) Norwich South constituency,  (b) Norfolk and  (c) England in each of the last 10 years.

Anne Milton: The number of people who died while waiting for an organ transplant in the Norfolk South constituency, in Norfolk and in England is shown in the following table.
	
		
			   Norwich South  Norfolk  England 
			 2001 0 1 357 
			 2002 1 4 454 
			 2003 0 0 440 
			 2004 2 5 498 
			 2005 3 7 518 
			 2006 1 6 494 
			 2007 0 3 552 
			 2008 0 5 527 
			 2009 0 9 623 
			 2010 0 6 534 
			 Total 7 46 4,997

Transplant Surgery

Simon Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children died while waiting for an organ transplant in  (a) Norwich South constituency,  (b) Norfolk and  (c) England in each of the last 10 years.

Anne Milton: The number of children who died while waiting for an organ transplant in the Norwich South constituency, in Norfolk and in England in each of the last 10 years is shown in the following table.
	
		
			   Norwich South  Norfolk  England 
			 2001 0 0 15 
			 2002 0 0 15 
			 2003 0 0 9 
			 2004 0 0 14 
			 2005 0 0 21 
			 2006 0 0 24 
			 2007 0 0 24 
			 2008 0 0 17 
			 2009 0 0 18 
			 2010 0 2 16 
			 Total 0 2 173

Tuberculosis

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he plans to fund the Find and Treat Tuberculosis Project and the Mobile X-Ray Screening Unit after April 2011.

Anne Milton: The national health service in London will be commissioning the Find and Treat service, including the mobile X-ray unit, in 2011-12.

Vaccination

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether vaccination and immunisation programmes will fall within the commissioning responsibility of  (a) GP consortia and  (b) local authorities under his proposals for NHS reform.

Anne Milton: Public Health England will be responsible for immunisation as one means of preventing infectious disease. It will be responsible for the national immunisation schedule and setting standards as advised by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation and will fund the delivery of immunisation programmes via two routes: local authorities and the NHS Commissioning Board. We propose that local authorities should be responsible for commissioning immunisation programmes primarily delivered through schools, such as the human papillomavirus vaccine and the teenage booster (against tetanus, diphtheria and polio) from a range of providers. Local authorities will also work closely with Public Health England, the national health service and local partners to ensure coordination of any immunisation response during a public health incident. Given the existing contractual arrangements in primary care commissioning for other immunisation programmes, we propose that Public Health England transfers funds from the public health budget to the NHS Commissioning Board to allow them to commission the remaining programmes. This will include the childhood, seasonal flu and pneumococcal (for older people) vaccination programmes.
	The NHS Commissioning Board will be responsible for commissioning a service for the whole population. For programmes where general practitioners (GPs) are not preferred providers, or where individual GPs opt out or are decommissioned from providing a service, the NHS Commissioning Board will commission alternative providers as appropriate (for example community pharmacies).
	The NHS will continue to commission targeted neonatal Hepatitis B and BCG vaccination provision, funded by Public Health England. Referral and opportunistic vaccination of those at clinical risk, for example intravenous drug users requiring Hepatitis B vaccination, or mothers needing post partum measles mumps and rubella vaccination, will also continue to be funded and commissioned by the NHS (including through existing primary care commissioning arrangements).
	These proposals are currently subject to consultation.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Child Maintenance Services

Michael Connarty: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his policy is on charging parents for the use of his Department's child maintenance services.

Maria Miller: The implementation of legislation, put in place by the previous administration, to allow for charging in the new statutory child maintenance service, is part of the coalition Government's much broader strategy to encourage parents to collaborate more around the financial welfare of their children if a family experiences the separation or divorce of parents.
	At present the child maintenance system can drive a wedge between separated parents. The Government want to help and encourage parents to collaborate and reach family-based maintenance arrangements wherever possible.
	Along with easier access to wider support services, the gateway to the statutory scheme will ensure parents are supported to take responsibility and make family-based arrangements.

Citizens' Pension

Douglas Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what consideration he has given to the merits of introducing a citizens' pension.

Steve Webb: The next generation face a different world to current pensioners due to longer working lives, increasing longevity and a changing pension landscape.
	We are currently looking at a number of options for simplifying the state pension system. No decisions have yet been made.

Disability Living Allowance

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the likely effect on carers of proposed reductions to the disability living allowance budget.

Maria Miller: The Government recognise that the UK's 6 million carers play an indispensable role in looking after relatives and friends who need support.
	We recognise the importance of DLA "passporting" the individual to other help and support, the detailed criteria that will be used in the new assessment to determine eligibility for Personal Independence Payment are currently being developed. At this point the new assessment has not been finalised-the effect for carers will be determined when it is finalised.

Disability Living Allowance

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent discussions his Department has had with disability organisations on the removal of the mobility component of disability living allowance from those in residential care homes.

Maria Miller: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Airdrie and Shotts (Pamela Nash) earlier in the session.

Employers' Liability Insurance Bureau

Natascha Engel: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will bring forward proposals to establish an employers' liability insurance bureau; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Grayling: In February 2010 the previous Government published their consultation document, "Accessing Compensation-Supporting people who need to trace employers' liability insurance", which set out proposals for people who need to find their employers' liability insurance policies in order to claim compensation. The consultation closed on 5 May 2010. There were two proposals; firstly an Employers' Liability Tracing Office, that would manage a database of employers' liability policies. Secondly, an Employers' Liability Insurance Bureau which would be a compensation fund of last resort for those individuals who are unable to trace employers' liability insurance records, ensuring they are able to receive compensation for injuries or diseases sustained during the course of their employment. We are in active discussions with all stakeholders on how this situation can be addressed and we will bring forward our proposals in due course.

Child Support

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the behavioural effects of levying charges on parents who use the future child support scheme on  (a) children living apart from one parent,  (b) parents with care and  (c) non-resident parents.

Maria Miller: The Department for Work and Pensions will produce estimates of the numbers impacted when we publish detailed proposals in the form of draft regulations later in the year. The impact assessments for the draft regulations will set out the estimated impacts on volumes and individuals.

Children: Maintenance

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps his Department plans to take to increase the collection rate for child maintenance payments.

Maria Miller: On 13 January, the Government published a Green Paper, "Strengthening families, promoting parental responsibility: the future of child maintenance" outlining proposals to reform the child maintenance system.
	The proposals aim to tackle the current situation, where it is estimated that there are over 3 million children in separated families, but just under 50% benefit from child maintenance. Research suggests that around half of the parents who use the Child Support Agency would be likely to make a family-based arrangement, if they had the right support. The Government aim to do this by providing more integrated support to encourage people to make family-based arrangements, which are more flexible and collaborative and are better for children.
	For those who cannot make family-based arrangements, there is and will continue to be, a statutory child maintenance service. This is currently delivered by the Child Support Agency, part of the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission.
	The Commission have confirmed that, in order to improve the collection rate within the statutory service, the Child Support Agency is increasing the use of tough enforcement measures, including deducting money directly from bank accounts and seizing property and other assets. It can also apply to the courts to have culpable parents disqualified from driving and even sent to prison.
	The Child Support Agency has also taken a number of steps to enhance the way it recovers arrears. This includes re-deploying over 400 members of staff into pursuing historic arrears; and when a non-resident parent misses a payment and legal action is appropriate, ensuring that this commences within 12 weeks.

Children: Maintenance

Michael Connarty: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the likely change in the number of parents using Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission services as a result of his proposed reforms.

Maria Miller: The Department for Work and Pensions will produce estimates of the numbers impacted when we publish detailed proposals in the form of draft regulations later in the year. The impact assessments for the draft regulations will set out the estimated impacts on volumes and individuals.

Departmental Libraries

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many  (a) certified and  (b) chartered librarians his Department has employed in each year since 2000.

Chris Grayling: The Department has not employed any certified librarians between 2000 and 2011. The chartered status of librarians employed by the Department during the same period is not held centrally. It would incur disproportionate cost to examine 11 years' worth of staff records to establish exact numbers. However, information on the chartered status of all librarians in membership of the Chartered Institute of Librarians and Information Professionals (CILIP), the professional body which awards chartership following qualification and evidence of professional development, is publicly available and published in the "CILIP yearbook 2010", Facet Publishing, 2010. ISBN 9781856046787. The Department currently employs 16 librarians of whom nine are chartered.

Departmental Pay

Pat McFadden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the  (a) total and  (b) average salary is of staff employed on fixed-term contracts in his Department.

Chris Grayling: The total annual cost of fixed term appointment staff, as at 31 December 2010, was £165,955,806 with an average salary of £18,369.
	As at 31 December 2010 there were 9,035 staff (FTE).
	Staff were employed on fixed term appointments to help the Department cope with an increase in customers during the height of the recession. As the height of the recession is now over, and due to public spending cuts, the Department aims to reduce the number of fixed term appointment staff employed.

Departmental Public Expenditure

Pat McFadden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much his Department has spent on the Government Car Service since May 2010.

Chris Grayling: After the completion of a review of DWP's use of the Government Car and Despatch Agency in May 2010 a revised operating model has had a significant reduction in both the use, and associated cost of the service to date.
	
		
			  Period  Expenditure (£)/percentage 
			 May 2010 to December 2010 233,000 
			 May 2009 to December 2009 512,000 
			   
			 Percentage reduction -54 
		
	
	The Department is reviewing all expenditure with a view to driving out inefficiencies and delivering value for money for the taxpayer.

Departmental Public Expenditure

Pat McFadden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much his Department has spent on wine since May 2010.

Chris Grayling: The Department does not keep a separate record of expenditure on alcohol. Such expenditure is included within the hospitality account. Expenditure on alcohol and entertaining is based on the principles set out in Managing Public Money and the Treasury handbook on Regularity, Propriety and Value for Money. Accordingly, alcohol is provided only as an exception and then only with the specific written authority of a small number of designated senior civil servants.
	Total expenditure on hospitality May 2010 to December 2010 is less than £3,000.
	The Department is reviewing all expenditure with a view to driving out efficiencies and delivering value for money for the taxpayer.

Departmental Public Expenditure

Pat McFadden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much his Department has spent on artwork since May 2010.

Chris Grayling: Works of art displayed in the Department for Work and Pensions are loaned from the Government Art Collection (GAC), which publishes an annual list of acquisitions. The most recent details of acquisitions made by the GAC were published in October 2010 and are available on the GAC website:
	http://www.gac.culture.gov.uk/images/documents/Reports/2009-2010_annual_report.pdf
	There is no cost to the Department for Work and Pensions.

Departmental Public Expenditure

Pat McFadden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pieces of artwork in his Department have been moved since May 2010.

Chris Grayling: The Department for Work and Pensions is not responsible for moving works of art displayed in its buildings. Art displayed is from the Government Art Collection which is also responsible for its transportation. Details of the Government Art Collections can be found under locations on their website
	http://www.gac.culture.gov.uk/

Departmental Public Expenditure

Pat McFadden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much his Department has spent on redecorating ministerial offices since May 2010.

Chris Grayling: There has been no expenditure on redecorating ministerial offices since May 2010.
	For comparison purposes, expenditure in respect of new works, refurbishments and planned maintenance to Ministers' offices in 2009-10 financial year was £19,223.85.

Departmental Public Expenditure

Pat McFadden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much his Department has spent on  (a) film production and  (b) filming of speeches since May 2010.

Chris Grayling: The Department has not spent any money on either  (a) film production and  (b) filming of speeches since May 2010.

Departmental Senior Civil Servants

Pat McFadden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will publish details of all senior civil service staff moves, including the names and salaries of all those moving posts within or leaving his Department, since May 2010.

Chris Grayling: In line with the central Government's transparency agenda the details of the senior civil service in the Department for Work and Pensions as at 30 June 2010 were published on the Department's website and the No. 10 website. The next disclosure will show details for 1 April 2011. In line with central Government policy guidance adopted under the transparency agenda, Departments are not releasing the names or banded salaries for those in the lowest (pay band 1) grade of the SCS, nor those at more senior levels who have not consented to the release of their names. In addition, the exact salary of any individual is personal data and as such cannot be released. The following is a link to the DWP Transparency page:
	http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/dwp-org-charts.pdf

Departmental Senior Civil Servants

Pat McFadden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will publish details of all Senior Civil Service staff exits from his Department since May 2010, including contractual and non-contractual payments made.

Chris Grayling: Since May 2010 there have been 28 senior civil service staff exits. With the exception of seven staff that left to transfer to another Government Department all except one were approved under contractual terms. The exception was approved at less than the approved early retirement terms then in place.

Disability Living Allowance: Cancer

Anne Begg: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people with cancer were in receipt of  (a) the care component of disabilityusb living allowance at the (i) higher rate, (ii) middle rate and (iii) lower rate and  (b) the mobility component of disability living allowance at the (A) higher rate and (B) lower rate in the latest period for which figures are available.

Maria Miller: The available information is in the table.
	
		
			  Disability living allowance in payment : Main disabling condition: Malignant disease-May 2011 
			   Number 
			  Care component  
			 All 82,400 
			 Highest 50,000 
			 Middle 12,100 
			 Lowest 15,000 
			 Nil 5,300 
			   
			  Mobility component  
			 All 82,400 
			 Higher 67,500 
			 Lower 4,000 
			 Nil 10,800 
			 Notes: 1. Caseload figures are rounded to the nearest 100. 2. Figures are adjusted to be consistent with the overall caseload from the WPLS. 3. The preferred data source for benefit statistics is 100% Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study. However, the 5% sample data are generally the preferred source for analysis on disabling condition as information is more complete for disabling condition on the 5% sample (Some recipients of DLA who transferred from the AA system may not have been allocated a specific disabling condition code. This problem can be corrected on the sample data but not on the WPLS data. The number of cases affected is decreasing over time). 4. A diagnosed medical condition does not mean that someone is automatically entitled to DLA. Entitlement is dependent on an assessment of how much help someone needs with personal care and/or mobility because of their disability. These statistics are only collected for administrative purposes. 5. Data are published at: http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/index.php?page=tabtool  Source: DWP Information Directorate: Sample data (5%)

Employment: Young People

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 31 January 2011,  Official Report, columns 587-8W, on jobseeker's allowance, what projection for business planning purposes his Department has made of 16 to 24 year olds in employment in  (a) 2011-12,  (b) 2012-13,  (c) 2013-14,  (d) 2014-15,  (e) 2015-16 and  (f) 2016-17.

Chris Grayling: The Department does not produce forecasts or projections of employment for business planning purposes. The Office for Budget Responsibility publishes forecasts of employment, the most recent being in the autumn statement, but these are not broken down by age group.

Housing Benefit

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate his Department has made of the number of households in  (a) London and  (b) England which will have a shortfall equal to or higher than £20 per week as a result of changes to local housing allowance and the introduction of benefit capping with effect from April 2011.

Steve Webb: The information is in the following table.
	
		
			   London  England 
			 Total number of local housing allowance claimants 159,370 839,440 
			 Number of claimants with a shortfall of £20 or more 31,000 35,960 
			  Note: Figures are rounded to the nearest 10.  Source: DWP analysis of Single Housing Benefit Extract data. 
		
	
	The figures refer to shortfalls caused by the changes to local housing allowance rates to be introduced in April 2011. These are setting rates at the 30th percentile of local rents, the introduction of local housing allowance caps and the removal of the five bedroom local housing allowance rate.
	Existing claimants will have up to nine months of transitional protection from any additional shortfall resulting from these changes following the date their claim is reviewed by the local authority, usually at the anniversary point of their claim. This means that many existing customers will not be affected until January 2012, and some will not be affected until December 2012.

Housing Benefit: Private Rented Housing

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will estimate the number of private rented properties in  (a) London and  (b) England rented by households in receipt of local housing allowance (LHA) which will be (i) offered to households not in receipt of LHA and (ii) reconfigured as houses in multiple occupation as a result of the proposed changes to LHA and introduction of a cap on household benefits from April 2011.

Steve Webb: The Department published an impact assessment for the 2011 changes to the local housing allowance arrangements on 30 November 2010, a copy of which is in the Library. In this assessment, the Department looked at the overall impact of the changes to the local housing allowance but did not include the potential behavioural impacts of either landlords or tenants as these are impossible to estimate precisely. However, the Department has widened the discretion of local authorities to make direct payments to landlords which will encourage landlords to continue to rent their properties to housing benefit tenants.

Marriage

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has to mark Marriage Week; and what steps the Government is taking to support marriage.

Chris Grayling: The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, my right hon. Friend the Member for Chingford and Woodford Green (Mr Duncan Smith), attended the launch of Marriage Week and spoke to reaffirm the Government's commitment to stable relationships.
	The Prime Minister offered the following message to mark Marriage Week:
	"I am delighted to support this year's marriage week. When two people make that decision to come together and face life as a team, that provides them with a great source of strength-and all the evidence shows it's a very good thing for wider society too. That's why I think it's vital we recognise the importance of marriage and celebrate commitment."
	The Prime Minister announced in December 2010 that the Government would provide £30 million for relationship support over the spending review period. A national prospectus for improving outcomes for children, young people and families was published by the Department for Education on 22 November. This invited organisations to bid on a 'not for profit' basis for grant funding for delivering relationship support services from April 2011. Bids are currently being assessed. The Prime Minister has set up the Interministerial Taskforce on Childhood and Families, which he chairs.
	The Government are looking at ways to reduce the couple penalty in the welfare system. A report by the Institute for Fiscal Studies published earlier this year indicated that the introduction of the universal credit will help meet the coalition agreement commitment to tackle the worst of the couple penalty in the tax credit system. It is also anticipated that the universal credit will, on average, reduce the couple penalty facing those on the lowest incomes.
	The Government also remain committed to looking at ways to support marriage through the tax system. Proposals will be brought forward by the Chancellor at the appropriate time.

Mobility Support

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the mobility support requirements of people in  (a) residential care and  (b) hospital.

Maria Miller: The Department draws on a wide range of sources to inform our understanding of the needs of disabled people, including those in living at home, hospital or in a residential care home. In addition, I have met with a number of disabled people and disability organisations regarding the proposed reforms to the mobility component of DLA. I have also encouraged people to put forward their views on the measure to remove the DLA mobility component from people in state funded residential care as part of the wider consultation on DLA reform which will end on 18 February 2011.

Personal Income

Michael Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the average income  (a) at current prices and  (b) in real terms of each income decile in each year since 1981.

Chris Grayling: Data are not available for all years since 1981. Available data are given in the following tables. Estimates of the distribution of equivalised household disposable incomes are available in the Households Below Average Income (HBAI) series. This uses disposable household income, adjusted using modified OECD equivalisation factors for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living. These data are at a household level.
	
		
			  Table 1: Values of median weekly equivalised disposable household income by decile, Before Housing Costs, 1981 to 2008-09, in current prices of the year in question 
			  £ 
			   Decile 
			   1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10 
			 1981 (UK) 42 51 60 70 80 90 101 117 138 182 
			 1987 (UK) 63 78 92 110 128 147 169 197 238 340 
			 1988-89 (UK) 67 87 106 128 151 175 202 236 287 398 
			 1990-91 (UK) 76 101 124 152 181 210 244 287 351 501 
			 1991-92 (UK) 81 109 132 160 191 222 259 303 373 529 
			 1992-93 (UK) 83 112 134 163 193 226 262 308 378 533 
			 1993-94 (UK) 92 124 150 178 210 243 281 329 402 578 
			 1994-95 (GB) 99 130 155 183 214 251 292 342 415 591 
			 1995-96 (GB) 101 136 161 190 222 259 300 351 434 619 
			 1996-97 (GB) 107 142 171 203 238 277 321 376 458 651 
			 1997-98 (GB) 108 146 177 210 248 286 332 389 473 675 
			 1998-99 (GB) 111 151 182 216 255 296 346 407 497 723 
			 1999-2000 (GB) 116 160 193 228 269 311 361 427 517 751 
			 2000-01 (GB) 118 167 201 236 276 320 369 436 532 773 
			 2001-02 (GB) 128 178 213 253 295 339 389 457 563 816 
			 2002-03 (UK) 131 185 223 263 305 351 405 471 575 839 
			 2003-04 (UK) 133 191 230 270 313 360 416 486 591 854 
			 2004-05 (UK) 141 201 241 283 326 373 430 503 614 892 
			 2005-06 (UK) 141 207 248 290 336 388 447 523 638 939 
			 2006-07 (UK) 142 212 258 303 351 402 463 544 667 972 
			 2007-08 (UK) 147 219 268 316 365 422 485 569 698 1,033 
			 2008-09 (UK) 151 229 280 329 381 437 506 591 731 1,072 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Values of median weekly equivalised disposable household income by decile, After Housing Costs, 1981 to 2008-09, in current prices of the year in question 
			  £ 
			   Decile  
			   1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10 
			 1981 (UK) 35 45 53 62 71 81 92 106 125 167 
			 1987 (UK) 48 65 77 93 111 128 148 174 210 306 
			 1988-89 (UK) 51 71 88 108 129 150 174 204 250 350 
			 1990-91 (UK) 54 79 99 124 149 175 207 243 298 436 
			 1991-92 (UK) 56 84 105 132 161 189 222 263 321 469 
			 1992-93 (UK) 56 87 108 136 165 194 228 271 332 480 
			 1993-94 (UK) 63 96 118 149 177 210 245 288 354 518 
			 1994-95 (GB) 60 98 119 149 180 214 252 298 365 526 
			 1995-96 (GB) 67 102 123 154 186 220 257 305 377 550 
			 1996-97 (GB) 69 104 130 164 199 236 275 325 401 580 
			 1997-98 (GB) 69 108 137 173 208 244 286 339 416 601 
			 1998-99 (GB) 76 112 141 177 212 251 297 351 432 642 
			 1999-2000 (GB) 77 119 151 187 225 265 309 369 450 666 
			 2000-01 (GB) 77 126 159 197 235 275 319 382 470 688 
			 2001-02 (GB) 86 138 172 214 253 294 340 401 497 734 
			 2002-03 (UK) 87 145 182 223 264 308 356 419 514 752 
			 2003-04 (UK) 87 149 188 229 270 315 365 431 528 777 
			 2004-05 (UK) 89 157 197 236 279 323 374 441 543 806 
			 2005-06 (UK) 89 157 199 242 286 335 387 459 564 842 
			 2006-07 (UK) 86 160 205 250 297 345 400 472 584 870 
			 2007-08 (UK) 87 163 211 257 307 358 417 491 608 918 
			 2008-09 (UK) 84 169 219 268 318 371 437 519 641 960 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3: Values of median weekly equivalised disposable household income by decile, Before Housing Costs, 1981 to 2008-09, in 2008-09 real terms prices 
			  £ 
			   Decile 
			   1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10 
			 1981 (UK) 125 154 181 209 239 270 303 351 414 546 
			 1987 (UK) 134 166 195 234 270 311 358 418 505 720 
			 1988-89 (UK) 128 167 202 245 289 335 385 452 550 761 
			 1990-91 (UK) 125 166 205 251 298 347 403 474 579 826 
			 1991-92 (UK) 126 169 205 250 297 346 403 472 581 823 
			 1992-93 (UK) 128 172 207 250 297 347 403 474 581 820 
			 1993-94 UK) 133 179 216 258 304 352 407 476 581 836 
			 1994-95 (GB) 137 180 215 254 298 348 406 476 576 822 
			 1995-96 (GB) 136 183 217 255 299 348 404 472 584 833 
			 1996-97 (GB) 140 186 223 265 311 362 419 491 598 850 
			 1997-99 (GB) 138 188 227 270 319 368 427 501 608 868 
			 1998-99 (GB) 141 191 231 275 323 376 439 516 630 918 
			 1999-2000 (GB) 144 198 238 282 332 384 446 527 639 928 
			 2000-01 (GB) 147 207 249 294 343 398 459 542 661 960 
			 2001-02 GB) 157 218 262 310 361 415 477 560 691 1,000 
			 2002-03 (UK) 157 223 268 316 367 423 487 567 691 1,009 
			 2003-04 (UK) 156 224 270 317 368 423 488 570 693 1,002 
			 2004-05 (UK) 160 229 275 322 372 425 491 574 700 1,017 
			 2005-06 (UK) 157 229 276 322 373 431 496 582 709 1,044 
			 2006-07 (UK) 152 227 277 325 376 431 496 583 714 1,042 
			 2007-08 (UK) 151 226 276 325 375 435 499 585 718 1,063 
			 2008-09 (UK) 151 229 280 329 381 437 506 591 731 1,072 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 4: Values of median weekly equivalised disposable household income by decile, After Housing Costs, 1981 to 2008-09, in 2008-09 real terms prices 
			  £ 
			   Decile 
			   1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10 
			 1981 (UK) 93 120 141 165 189 213 242 280 331 440 
			 1987 (UK) 93 125 148 179 213 246 285 335 405 590 
			 1988-89 (UK) 91 126 156 192 230 267 309 363 443 621 
			 1990-91 (UK) 85 124 156 194 235 275 325 382 467 685 
			 1991-92 (UK) 82 123 154 194 236 276 325 386 470 687 
			 1992-93 (UK) 80 124 154 194 235 277 326 387 473 685 
			 1993-94 (UK) 85 129 159 200 239 283 330 389 477 699 
			 1994-95 (GB) 78 126 155 193 233 277 326 386 472 682 
			 1995-96 (GB) 84 128 155 194 234 277 324 384 475 692 
			 1996-97 (GB) 85 129 160 203 246 291 340 402 495 717 
			 1997-99 (GB) 84 131 166 210 252 296 346 411 504 728 
			 1998-99 (GB) 91 135 170 214 256 303 358 423 522 774 
			 1999-2000 (GB) 91 141 179 222 267 314 366 437 534 790 
			 2000-01 (GB) 92 150 189 234 280 327 380 455 560 819 
			 2001-02 (GB) 101 161 202 251 296 344 398 469 583 860 
			 2002-03 (UK) 101 167 210 257 305 356 411 484 594 869 
			 2003-04 (UK) 99 170 214 261 308 359 416 490 601 884 
			 2004-05 (UK) 100 177 221 266 313 363 421 495 610 906 
			 2005-06 (UK) 98 173 220 267 315 370 428 507 623 930 
			 2006-07 (UK) 92 171 220 268 318 370 429 506 626 933 
			 2007-08 (UK) 91 170 220 269 320 374 435 512 634 959 
			 2008-09 (UK) 84 169 219 268 318 371 437 519 641 960 
			  Notes:  1. These statistics are based on Households Below Average Income.  2. The reference period for Households Below Average Income figures are single financial years.  3. Data from 1994-95 are sourced from the Family Resources Survey, with earlier data sourced from the Family Expenditure Survey.  4. FES figures are for the United Kingdom, FRS figures are for Great Britain up to 2001-02, and for the United Kingdom from 2002-03. The reference period for FRS figures is single financial years. FES figures are two combined calendar years from 1990-91 to 1992-93 and two financial years combined for 1993-95.  5. Small changes should be treated with caution as these will be affected by sampling error and variability in non-response.  6. The income measures used to derive the estimates shown employ the same methodology as the Department for Work and Pensions publication 'Households Below Average Income' series, which uses disposable household income, adjusted (or 'equivalised') for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living, equivalised using Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development equivalisation factors.  7. Median incomes have been provided rather than mean incomes because the income distribution is skewed with some outliers with high incomes. 8. Weekly incomes have been rounded to the nearest pound sterling.  9. Figures have been presented on a Before Housing Cost and an After Housing Cost basis. For Before Housing Costs, housing costs (such as rent, water rates, mortgage interest payments, structural insurance payments and ground rent and service charges) are not deducted from income, while for After Housing Costs they are.   Source:  Households Below Average Income, DWP.

Social Security Benefits: Telephone Services

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will take steps to minimise costs to individuals of applying for benefits by telephone.

Chris Grayling: The Department for Work and Pensions' strategy is that telephone calls to apply for benefit or to request emergency payments should be free, so it uses 0800 freephone numbers for these calls. It is free to call the Department's 0800 numbers from BT landlines and via nine of the UK's largest mobile phone operators, representing 95% of the mobile market. We are continuing to work with the remaining mobile phone providers to negotiate free calls to DWP 0800 numbers.

State Retirement Pensions

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of retired  (a) women and  (b) men who had an entitlement to a basic state pension received less than the full amount of the pension in the last year for which figures are available.

Steve Webb: The information is in the table.
	
		
			  Proportion of people resident in Great Britain entitled to a basic state pension who are not getting the full amount 
			   Total number of basic state pension recipients  Percentage of recipients getting less than a full basic state pension 
			 Women 7,009,300 52.7 
			 Men 4,254,000 13.6 
			  Notes: 1. Figures are as at March 2010. 2. Case load figures are rounded to the nearest hundred.  Source:  Department for Work and Pensions, Information Directorate, 5% sample.

TRANSPORT

Aviation: EC Action

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has for the future of CAP 371 flight time limitations following the European Aviation Safety Agency's publication of a Notice of Proposed Amendment.

Theresa Villiers: The European Aviation Safety Agency's Notice of Proposed Amendment contains draft implementing rules on flight time limitations. These rules are likely to be amended in the light of responses to the consultation. Once the final rules are adopted they will become directly applicable to aircraft within EASA's remit. At that point the Civil Aviation Authority's guidance in CAP 371 will be applicable only to non EASA aircraft.

Bus Services: Finance

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will take steps to maintain adequate levels of bus service provision for those who commute to work by bus.

Norman Baker: In London, this is matter for the Mayor and Transport for London.
	Outside London, 78% of bus services are operated commercially, including those used by commuters.
	Bus operators are supported by my Department through the Bus Service Operators Grant. Funding has been maintained in full in 2011-12
	Where commercial services are not viable, it is for local authorities, not central Government, to work in partnership with operators and local communities to decide how best to provide access to services for commuters in these areas. This may mean the provision of local authority tendered bus services; but it may also be that other more flexible services provided by the council or the voluntary sector are more sustainable. For instance, the Wheels to Work scheme provides a moped, electric bike or bicycle to young people to help them access employment opportunities.

Bus Services: Finance

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the level of funding for rural bus services to be provided from the local authority funding settlement for 2011-12.

Norman Baker: The Department for Transport has not assessed the level of funding to be provided by local authorities for rural bus services as this will be up to individual local authorities in light of their own priorities and budgets.
	78% of bus services outside London are provided by operators on a commercial basis. The Department supports these services, including those operating in rural areas, through Bus Service Operator's Grant, the funding for which has been maintained in its entirety for 2011-12.

Crossrail

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether it is his policy to consider extending the Crossrail rail into Kent in the future.

Theresa Villiers: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given to him on 21 June 2010,  Official Report, column 42W.

Departmental Marketing

Conor Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the cost to the public purse was of the manufacture and distribution of Department branded drinks coasters in the last financial year for which figures are available.

Norman Baker: The Department for Transport incurred no expenditure in the 2009-10 financial year on the manufacture and distribution of drinks coasters carrying the Department's corporate brand.
	A small amount was spent on drinks coasters carrying safety campaign brands owned by the Department, namely £5,022 on "Don't Drink and Drive" beer mats, and £2,026 on "Don't Drink and Drown" beer mats, carrying HM Coastguard and ROSPA logos.

Departmental NDPBs

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what targets have been set for the work of the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency.

Michael Penning: Details of the targets that have been set for the work of the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency are published in the DVLA Business Plan. This can be found on the DVLA's website at:
	www.dvla.gov.uk
	under the heading of "publications".

Departmental NDPBs

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what targets have been set for the work of the Government Car and Despatch Agency.

Michael Penning: I refer the hon. Member to the targets outlined within the written statement, "Motoring and Freight Services Ministerial Targets", made on 30 March 2010,  Official Report, column 117WS. Copies of the Government Car and Despatch Agency (GCDA) Business Plan were deposited in the Libraries of both Houses on 30 March 2010.

Departmental Public Expenditure

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much Barnett consequential funding his Department has provided to each of the devolved Administrations in  (a) 2010-11 to date and  (b) each of the last three years; and with which programmes such funding was associated.

Norman Baker: In the 2010 spending review changes in the DEL budgets of the devolved Administrations were determined by the Barnett formula in the normal way. The settlements for the years 2011-12 to 2014-15 were published in table 2.22 of the 2010 spending review document (Cm 7942).
	Barnett consequentials relating to each of the devolved Administrations for the years 2008-09 to 2010-11 are published as part of the Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses Supplementary Material on the Treasury's website under the heading House of Lords Select Committee on the Barnett formula:
	http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/pespub_pesa10.htm
	Updated tables taking account of adjustments since the publication of the 2010 edition of PESA will be published alongside the next edition of PESA later this year.
	Information on the block grants paid by the territorial offices to the devolved Administrations is published alongside the Main and Supplementary Estimates.

Driving Standards Agency

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will assess the merits of amalgamating of the Driving Standards Agency, Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency and Vehicle Operator Services Agency for the purposes of reducing administrative costs.

Michael Penning: As part of the Government's Efficiency and Reform agenda we are looking at options to reduce administrative costs. The Department has already merged many of its back-office functions into a single Shared Services Centre, including functions from Driving Standards Agency (DSA) and the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA).

Driving: Berwick-Upon-Tweed

Alan Beith: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he has any plans to make changes to the availability of driving tests in Berwick-upon-Tweed.

Michael Penning: The Driving Standards Agency (DSA) has no current plans to make changes to the availability of driving tests at Berwick-upon-Tweed.

East Coast: Power Sockets

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will assess the reliability of at-seat power sockets on carriages on Directly Operated Railways Limited East Coast rail services; and if he will make a statement.

Theresa Villiers: East Coast assesses the reliability of this equipment, and the socket power supply is tested as part of the routine carriage maintenance.

Excise Duties: Fuels

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions  (a) he and  (b) other Ministers in his Department have had with representatives of the logistics industry to discuss the likely effects of scheduled fuel duty rises in the last quarter.

Michael Penning: Ministers meet regularly with logistic industry representatives to discuss a wide range of issues, including the effects of scheduled increases in fuel duty. Most recently, I attended the annual "Listening to Industry" event on 1 February.

Motorways: Advertising

Mark Tami: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with  (a) the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government and  (b) other relevant bodies on the (i) control and (ii) regulation of advertising hoardings adjacent to motorways.

Michael Penning: No such discussions have taken place.
	As part of the Localism Bill there are proposals to introduce measures to allow local planning authorities to remove, and then dispose of, any display structure which is in their area and which in their opinion is used for the display of unauthorised advertisements. Further, local planning authorities will be able to serve an action notice on the owner or occupier of the land in or on which there is a persistent problem with the display of unauthorised advertisements.
	The Government believe that local planning authorities already have adequate powers to deal with trailer advertisements under the Control of Advertisements Regulations. Guidance is in DCLG Circular 03/2007 (Annex paragraphs 147 and 148).

North Review of Drink and Drug Driving Law

Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he plans to respond to  (a) the North Review of Drink and Drug Driving Law and  (b) the Transport Committee report on Drink and Drug Driving Law, Session 2010-11, HC 460.

Michael Penning: A full, combined response to these two reports will be published shortly.

Railway Tracks: Sewage

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate his Department has made of the volume of sewage discharged onto railway tracks in the latest period for which figures are available.

Theresa Villiers: The Department for Transport does not hold this information. However, my hon. Friend may wish to contact the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC) at the following address to establish what information their members can provide:
	ATOC Ltd
	3rd Floor
	40 Bernard Street
	London WC1N 1BY
	The Department would like all passenger trains to be fitted with retention toilet systems, an aspiration that is fully supported by the wider rail industry. However, this will take time to deliver given its reliance on the introduction of new trains, which are all fitted with retention toilets, and the extent to which such systems can be retrofitted to older fleets.

Railways: Power Sockets

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will assess the role of providing on-board facilities including power sockets and wi-fi on inter-city rail services in encouraging a modal shift away from the use of domestic flights; and if he will make a statement.

Theresa Villiers: The Department for Transport acknowledges that the provision of on-board facilities on inter-city rail services including power sockets and wi-fi is attractive to many passengers and may encourage modal shift. However, it is for train operators to decide if there is sufficient value and benefit to passengers to warrant the provision of these facilities on their services.

Road Fund Licences

Caroline Nokes: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what proportion of road fund licences were issued  (a) by the Post Office and  (b) in response to an online application in (i) 2007, (ii) 2008 and (iii) 2010.

Michael Penning: The following table shows the breakdown of road fund licences issued by the Post Office and Online. Road fund licences are also issued by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) Local Offices and through an electronic link with fleet operators. Figures for these channels area also included.
	
		
			   2007  2008  2010 
			   Volume  Percentage  Volume  Percentage  Volume  Percentage 
			 Post Office 29,463,154 68.9 26,922,581 61.4 22,429,894 52.1 
			 Online 10,977,240 25.7 14,453,588 33.0 18,359,727 42.7 
			 DVLA Local Offices 1,243,048 2.9 1,198,009 2.7 1,088,809 2.5 
			 Fleets 1,088,308 2.5 1,243,424 2.8 1,168,431 2.7

Roads: Safety

Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the effects of his Department's decision to reduce the area-based road safety grant.

Michael Penning: The Government have removed ring-fencing from local authority grants so that councils are able to set their own priorities. Extra funding support for road safety is now being provided in the revenue support grant. I would expect road safety to remain a priority for local communities and for local spending to reflect that.
	The Government will shortly publish their draft road safety strategy for consultation.

Sea Rescue

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many of the incidents handled by HM Coastguard in the UK search and rescue region in the last three years were initiated by  (a) digital selective calling and  (b) a call on VHF channel 16.

Michael Penning: The Maritime and Coastguard Agency could gather the data you have requested only at a disproportionate cost. It is not recorded in a readily accessible format and would require a manual check of all incidents.

Shipping: Pay

Andrew Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what his policy is on steps to equalise differential pay for seafarers working on UK registered ships.

Michael Penning: I will be introducing affirmative regulations under the Equality Act 2010 very shortly.
	These regulations will specify how Part 5 of the Equality Act 2010 applies to work on ships and hovercraft, and seafarers; and will also bring the UK law on seafarers differential pay in to line with EU law.
	It is my intention to legislate in a way that minimises to the greatest extent possible, the potential threat to the UK flag.

Southeastern

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many rail services operated by Southeastern have been cancelled in each year of the current franchise agreement.

Theresa Villiers: The information requested is given in the following table:
	
		
			   Trains planned  Trains cancelled  Percentage cancelled 
			 April 2006 to March 2007 570,237 5,227 0.9 
			 April 2007 to March 2008 580,260 5,102 0.9 
			 April 2008 to March 2009 590,435 7,326 1.2 
			 April 2009 to March 2010 604,972 9,653 1.6 
			 April 2010 to December 2010 464,603 5,079 1.1 
		
	
	Period 9 2010-11 (14 November to 11 December 2010) is the latest data available.

Travel: Costs

Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate his Department has made of the percentage change in real terms of the cost of travelling by  (a) private car,  (b) bus,  (c) train and  (d) domestic aeroplane since (i) 1980 and (ii) 1997.

Norman Baker: The Department for Transport has not estimated changes in the real cost of motoring or any other mode of travel.
	Data from the independent ONS suggest that between 1980 and 2010 the real cost of motoring, including the purchase of a vehicle, declined by 10%, bus and coach fares increased by 54% and rail fares increased by 55% in real terms.
	ONS data suggest that between 1997 and 2010 the real cost of motoring, including the purchase of a vehicle, declined by 7%, bus and coach fares increased by 24% and rail fares increased by 17% in real terms.
	Figures from the Office of Rail Regulation's National Rail Trends show that between 1985 and 2010 total government support to the rail industry has doubled in real terms, and that between 1997 and 2010 it increased by 86% in real terms. 1985 is the earliest year for which comparable data are available.
	The costs of travelling by air are not available from ONS data. However, the cost of the average UK one-way air fare, including taxes and charges, covering domestic flights fell by 35% in real terms between 1997 and 2008, the latest date for which figures are available:
	http://www.rail-reg.gov.uk/upload/xls/nrt_ch6_miscellaneous_tables.xls

Travel: Costs

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the change in real terms of the cost of travelling by  (a) private car,  (b) bus,  (c) train and  (d) domestic air flight between (i) 1980 and 2010 and (ii) 2000 and 2010.

Norman Baker: holding answer 9 February 2011
	I have not estimated changes to the real cost of motoring or any other mode of travel.
	Data from the independent ONS suggests that between 1980 and 2010 the real cost of motoring, including the purchase of a vehicle, declined by 10%, bus and coach fares increased by 54% and rail fares increased by 55% in real terms.
	ONS data suggests that between 2000 and 2010 the real cost of motoring, including the purchase of a vehicle, declined by 8%, bus and coach fares increased by 15% and rail fares increased by 20% in real terms.
	Figures from the Office of Rail Regulation's National Rail Trends; see:
	http://www.rail-reg.gov.uk/upload/xls/nrt_ch6_miscellaneous_tables.xls
	show that between 1985 and 2010 total Government support to the rail industry has doubled in real terms, and that between 2000 and 2010 it has more than doubled in real terms. 1985 is the earliest year for which comparable data are available.
	The costs of travelling by air are not available from ONS data. However, the average cost of a one-way air fare, including taxes and charges, covering domestic flights fell by 34% in real terms between 2000 and 2008, the latest date for which figures are available.

UN Decade of Road Safety

Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to mark the launch of the UN Decade of Road Safety on 11 May 2011.

Michael Penning: Ministers are planning to participate in events organised by road safety groups to mark the launch of the UN Decade of Road Safety on 11 May.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

House of Lords: Reform

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when he plans to publish a draft Bill on reform of the House of Lords.

Mark Harper: The cross-party Committee which the Deputy Prime Minister chairs, and of which the right hon. Member for Tooting is a member, is considering proposals for a wholly or mainly elected second chamber. The Government will publish a draft Bill early this year. The Bill will then be subject to pre-legislative scrutiny. The Government hope that this will be carried out by a joint committee of both Houses.

DEFENCE

Armed Forces: Disciplinary Proceedings

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many court martials for malingering there have been since the Armed Forces Act 2006 came into force; and how many of those charged of the offence were under the age of 18.

Andrew Robathan: holding answer 9 February 2011
	One individual has been court martialled for malingering since the Armed Forces Act 2006 came into force. Additionally, a Preliminary Court Martial Hearing is due to convene shortly to discuss one count of malingering. Neither of the individuals involved are under 18 years of age.

Armed Forces: Finance

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the funding settlement under the comprehensive spending review to meet the objectives of the Future Force 2020 Model set out in the Strategic Defence and Security Review.

Liam Fox: The spending review sets out the Ministry of Defence's core budget for the next four years. The budget for the spending review period includes ambitious but achievable targets for delivering non front-line and efficiency savings of some £4.3 billion over the next four years. We are determined to deliver these. This period is the start of a process to bring the Defence budget back into balance. As we are continuing to develop and refine our Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR) implementation plans it is not sensible to speculate about the overall cost of the future Defence programme.
	Funding after 2015 will be an issue for the next spending review. In announcing the SDSR on 19 October 2010,  Official Report, columns 797-826, the Prime Minister was clear that his own strong view was that there would need to be real terms growth in the Defence budget in the years beyond the current spending review to make Future Force 2020 affordable.

Armed Forces: Health Services

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the potential effects of the outcome of the Comprehensive Spending Review on standards of medical care received by armed forces personnel.

Andrew Robathan: The Strategic Defence and Security Review, undertaken as part of the comprehensive spending review, included a commitment to maintain and further develop the medical support provided by the Defence Medical Services and the NHS. Specifically, it committed an additional £20 million per year for the provision of health care to service personnel. Plans have yet to be finalised but this funding is likely to be applied mostly to providing additional health care personnel, including enhancements to mental health provision, rehabilitation units and at the Royal Centre for Defence Medicine and Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre.

Armed Forces: Housing

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has for the future of his Department's Housing Information Centre in Osbaldwick, York.

Andrew Robathan: The future provision of housing services for armed forces personnel and their families, including the role and responsibilities of all seven regional housing information centres, are currently under consideration as part of the ongoing work following up the Strategic Defence and Security Review, and reflecting the next estate generation contracts programme.
	For that reason, it is too early to give an indication of the potential impact of this ongoing work on the housing information centre at Osbaldwick, York.

Armed Forces: Housing

Thomas Docherty: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions he has had with Ministers in  (a) the Scottish Executive,  (b) the Welsh Assembly Government and  (c) the Northern Ireland Executive on the implementation of the aspects of the military covenant relating to (i) housing and (ii) education; and on what dates such discussions took place.

Andrew Robathan: holding answer 11 February 2011
	While no meetings have taken place with Ministers of the devolved Administrations specifically to discuss the implementation of the armed forces covenant, the Ministry of Defence maintains a close dialogue with their officials. For example, the External Reference Group, which delivers independent judgment on the Government's efforts in supporting the armed forces, families and veterans, includes representatives from the devolved Administrations.

Armed Forces: Pensions

Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many members of the Armed Forces Pension Scheme there are.

Andrew Robathan: The number of members of the Armed Forces Pension Scheme (AFPS) can be found on pages eight to 10 of the AFPS Resource Accounts for financial year 2009-10, copies of which are available in the Library of the House.

Body Armour

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to improve the quality of body armour procured by his Department.

Peter Luff: The Ministry of Defence buys body armour on a continual basis as the operational need arises. Osprey body armour was introduced in 2006 and has undergone a number of refinements and improvements since, culminating in the current Mk 4 Osprey. Osprey Mk 4 provides a high level of protection against small arms and fragmentation threats and is ergonomically designed and lighter than previous versions of Osprey.
	The next planned update to body armour will be through the VIRTUS programme which is currently in its assessment phase. Meanwhile Osprey will continue to develop in light of operational feedback and outputs from ongoing research.

Civilian Personnel Reductions

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 31 January 2011,  Official Report, column 584, on civilian personnel reductions, on how many occasions since assuming office in 2010 he has met representatives from the PCS union; what future meetings he plans to hold with the PCS union on civilian personnel reductions in his Department; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Robathan: The Secretary of State for Defence, my right hon. Friend the Member for North Somerset (Dr Fox), met with the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) and the other Ministry of Defence recognised trade unions on 2 September 2010 when the potential for civilian reductions was discussed in advance of the Strategic Defence and Security Review announcement. At that meeting it was agreed that a Minister should be appointed to lead engagement with the Trade Unions on civilian issues. I have taken on this responsibility.
	The Secretary of State is scheduled to attend a further meeting with the Trade Unions (including PCS) on 28 February, which I will also attend. This meeting will specifically discuss the civilian workforce reductions.
	There is also an ongoing dialogue between officials and the recognised departmental trade unions over the implementation of the civilian reductions.

Defence: Exports

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent steps his Department has taken to promote UK defence exports to international partners.

Gerald Howarth: This Government are supporting defence exports through an active and innovative defence diplomacy initiative. Ministry of Defence (MOD) Ministers are actively promoting defence exports to international partners. The Prime Minister has stated that any Government Minister travelling overseas should promote the best that Britain has to offer, including in defence and security. We recognise the important contribution defence exports can make in supporting our key strategic relationships. Exports can also help to maintain the UK's defence and aerospace industry, which employs 300,000 people, many of whom are highly skilled. Defence exports could help to reduce the cost to the taxpayer of MOD acquisition programmes through longer production runs, sharing of overheads on defence industrial facilities and contributing to development costs.
	The Defence and Security Industrial Technology Paper contains a section on defence exports. I strongly encourage anyone who has a view on these issues to contribute to the debate as part of the public consultation process which continues until 30 March 2011.
	We are embedding exportability in the design stage of the procurement process. By offering partnerships when designing equipment we can consider different capability requirements, thus increasing export opportunities. We are currently in discussions with a number of nations regarding Global Combat Ship new frigate, and opportunities to work with them to develop this capability.
	My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Defence has recently set up the Defence Exports Working Group which brings together Ministers and senior officials from across Government to plan and focus support to defence exports.

Defence: Procurement

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his policy is on increasing the diversity of the UK defence market.

Peter Luff: The Government published a Green Paper in December 2010 on 'Equipment, Support and Technology for UK Defence and Security: a Consultation Paper', copies of which are available in the Library of the House. This started a period of formal consultation on issues such as research priorities, intellectual property, support to exports and the role of small and medium enterprises. The outcomes of the current consultation process on the Green Paper will be taken forward in a White Paper which will be published later this year.

Departmental Correspondence

Gemma Doyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how long on average it has taken to respond to correspondence addressed to each Minister who has held office in his Department in each year since 2001.

Andrew Robathan: The information is not held in the format requested.
	The Cabinet Office publishes on an annual basis a report on Departments' and agencies' performance on handling ministerial correspondence, and the report for 2010 will be published once figures have been collated. Performance statistics for 2009 were published on 16 March 2010,  Official Report, column 47WS.

Departmental Energy

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much his Department has saved in  (a) energy costs and  (b) carbon dioxide emissions since the introduction of real time energy displays.

Andrew Robathan: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) real time display data shows electricity, gas and heating energy usage for MOD Main Building only. The displays went live during the period 7 to 29 July 2010. During the period from 1 August 2010 to 28 January 2011, savings of £144,000 had been made compared to energy usage for the same period during the year 2009-10, which represents an equivalent carbon dioxide saving of 1.03 million kg.

Departmental Responsibilities

Gemma Doyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the Minister for Defence Personnel, Welfare and Veterans last met representatives of the  (a) Navy Families Federation,  (b) Army Families Federation and  (c) RAF Families Federation.

Andrew Robathan: I met representatives of all three Families Federations on 8 February 2011. This was one of the regular 'Families Forum' meetings which enable the three Federations to raise issues direct with Ministers. I also met all three on 10 February 2011.

Iran: Nuclear Power

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment his Department has made of the development of Iran's heavy water research reactor.

Liam Fox: Iran is constructing a 40 megawatt heavy water reactor near Arak. Iran says this reactor, also known as the IR-40, is primarily intended for medical purposes. This type of reactor could also be used for plutonium production, and the UN has assessed the heavy water research reactor programme as proliferation sensitive. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has confirmed that construction is continuing in violation of UN Security Council Resolutions (most recently UNSCR 1929 of 2010), which require that Iran suspend its proliferation sensitive uranium enrichment and heavy water-related projects. The UK continues to implement all UN Security Council resolutions relating to Iran and shares the concerns of the IAEA.

Military Aircraft: Helicopters

Bob Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  when he intends to publish the refreshed Rotary Wing Strategy; and if he will place a copy in the Library on publication;
	(2)  what timetable his Department has set for completion of the refreshed Rotary Wing Strategy.

Peter Luff: The Rotary Wing Strategy will be revised in line with the Strategic Defence and Security Review and the results of the Department's annual planning round which is expected to conclude in spring 2011. Any significant further changes to the Rotary Wing Strategy that arise as a result of the planning round will be announced to Parliament in the normal way.

Trident Replacement Submarines

Tessa Munt: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 31 January 2011,  Official Report, column 581, on Trident replacement submarines, what proportion of the costs of the  (a) first,  (b) second and  (c) third new submarine will have been (i) spent and (ii) committed by 7 May 2015.

Liam Fox: The initial gate business case for the assessment phase of the programme to replace the Trident submarines is currently being reviewed. During this assessment phase we would expect to order certain parts for up to three boats to ensure they are ready for use once the main construction phase begins after main gate in 2016. However, until the assessment phase programme has been approved it is not possible to confirm the value of these parts.